■»•  ^ ■---■■-...«  ~-. 


STATE 


I 


EDWARD  HOWARD  GRJ 


RJU 


LINCOLN  ROOM 


UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 
LIBRARY 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2012  with  funding  from 

University  of  Illinois  Urbana-Champaign 


http://www.archive.org/details/americanstatesmeOOgrig 


AMERICAN 
STATESMEN 

An  Interpretation  of 
Our  History  and  Heritage 

BY 

EDWARD  HOWARD  GRIGGS 


ORCHARD  HILL  PRESS 

croton-on-hudson 

New  York 

1927 


Copyright,  1927,  by 
EDWARD  HOWARD  GRIGGS 


Printed  in  U.  8.  A. 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Introduction         5 

I.  Washington  :     The  First  American 10 

II.   Franklin  :      The   Practical   American  ...      66 

III.   Jefferson:     The  Democratic  American  .      .      .      .118 

IV.   Hamilton,   and   the   Making   of   our   Government   175 
V.  Lee  :      The    American    Warrior      ......  235 

VI.  Lincoln  :      The    Prophetic    American      ....   287 

Book  List 348 

Index         356 


INTRODUCTION 

THIS  generation  of  Americans  faces  a  world  of 
new  and  perplexing  problems.  Certain  of  these 
come  from  the  mere  expansion  of  the  country 
in  territory  and  population,  with  the  unparalleled 
multiplication  of  machinery.  Others  result  from  the 
changed  methods  of  industrial  production,  and  the 
consequent  drawing  apart  of  different  groups  of  the 
population  in  mutual  antagonism.  Still  others  are  a 
direct  heritage  from  the  world  war,  which  changed 
the  whole  plane  of  our  international  relations.  The 
answer  we  give  to  many  of  these  problems  will  be  the 
permanent  answer,  for  our  whole  future. 

Our  forefathers,  one  and  all,  believed  that  America 
was  to  be,  not  only  a  land  of  freedom  and  opportu- 
nity, for  those  who  had  the  good  fortune  to  dwell 
here,  but  as  well  a  sort  of  beacon  light  to  the  nations 
of  the  earth.  They  were  convinced  that  our  experi- 
ment would  challenge  the  liberal  party  all  over  the 
world,  be  followed  by  similar  developments  every- 
where, until  all  nations  should  rise  to  democracy. 
Were  these  hopes  vain  dreams,  or  were  they  great 
challenging  ideas  that  demand  our  following  and  fur- 
therance at  the  present  hour? 

"Americanism"  is  on  countless  lips;  but  used  often 
merely   to  express   the   user's   prejudice    and   hate, 

5 


6  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

toward  other  groups,  equally  American.  What  is 
Americanism?  What  does  the  American  spirit 
mean?  What  is  the  moral  leadership  to  which  Amer- 
ica is  called,  among  the  nations  of  the  earth?  There 
is  no  way  to  answer  these  questions  justly,  except 
by  returning  to  our  history  and  reinterpreting  the 
heritage  from  our  brief  but  noble  past. 

That  is  the  purpose  of  these  studies,  portraying 
six  outstanding  leaders  in  our  history,  and  seeking, 
through  them,  to  interpret  our  heritage  and  show  the 
challenge  it  carries  for  us  today. 

Washington  is  our  first  American.  Patient,  gen- 
erous and  enduring,  in  the  face  of  malicious  enmities 
and  apparently  hopeless  conditions,  never  despairing, 
he  led  the  loosely  associated  colonies  through  the  Rev- 
olution to  victory.  Twice  unanimously  chosen  Presi- 
dent of  the  infant  nation,  his  absolute  integrity 
and  selfless  leadership  carried  the  precarious  Union 
through  its  initial  dangers,  gave  it  strength  and  per- 
manence, and  eliminated  forever  the  possibility  of  a 
return  to  the  monarchical  system  of  the  old  world. 

Second  only  to  Washington's  service  was  that  of 
Franklin  in  making  victory  possible  in  the  Revolu- 
tion. The  wisest  and  shrewdest  diplomat  our  country 
has  yet  produced,  impervious  to  bribes  and  unchanged 
in  conduct  by  either  flattering  honors  or  malicious  at- 
tacks, protected  in  spirit  by  his  abundant  humor,  and 
through  it  and  his  wisdom  steering  many  an  appar- 
ently hopeless  situation  through  to  successful  issue, 
he  won  and  held  the  sympathy  and  help  of  France. 


INTRODUCTION  7 

Discoverer  and  inventor,  master  of  virile  English 
style,  humorist  and  moralist,  he  is  our  prototype  of 
the  self-made  practical  American. 

Jefferson,  father  of  American  religious  freedom, 
a  Virginia  gentleman,  fighting  consistently  and  suc- 
cessfully every  form  of  aristocratic  privilege  in  Vir- 
ginia, a  slave-holder,  hating  the  institution  of  slav- 
ery, was  the  most  many-sided  and  variously  cultivated 
of  all  the  fathers  of  our  country.  He  wrote  the  char- 
ter of  human  liberties;  formulated  for  all  time  the 
philosophy  of  demopracy;  and,  as  a  practical  states- 
man, disregarded  his  own  views  of  the  Constitution, 
and  gave  the  nation  that  vast  Western  empire  which 
assured  the  progress  and  greatness  he  visioned  with 
wide  imagination.  Recognizing  that  education  is  the 
lever  of  democracy,  he  early  advocated  a  complete 
system  of  state  education,  and  crowned  his  lifework 
by  establishing  the  University  of  Virginia. 

While  others  initiated  our  institutions  and  formu- 
lated the  Constitution,  it  was  Hamilton  who,  more 
than  all  others,  gave  the  Federal  government  vitality, 
strength  and  permanence.  One  of  the  truly  great 
statesmen  of  all  ages,  a  wise  and  far-sighted  econo- 
mist, the  most  trenchant  political  thinker  and  writer 
America  has  produced,  untiringly  fighting  for  the 
principles  in  which  he  believed,  achieving  his  amazing 
victories  by  sheer  force  of  intellect,  Hamilton's  trag- 
ically terminated  career  is  one  of  the  most  brilliant 
in  our  history  and  fruitful  in  all  that  makes  America 
strong  and  great  today. 


8  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

Perhaps  no  other  American  has  been  so  universally 
and  devotedly  loved  by  his  own  people  as  Robert  Ed- 
ward Lee.  A  true  Virginia  gentleman,  incarnating 
the  beautiful  chivalry  of  its  old  aristocratic  life ;  with 
all  of  its  virtues  and  none  of  its  vices ;  opposing  sec- 
tional hatreds  and  bitterly  regretting  the  rift  in  the 
Union,  Lee  obeyed  his  conscience  and  made  the  only 
choice  he  could  make.  Holding  Washington  as  his 
example  and  ideal,  Lee  hoped  to  achieve  for  his  State 
and  section  the  liberty  and  complete  self-determina- 
tion Washington  had  won  for  the,  Colonies  in  relation 
to  the  mother  land.  The  greatest  military  genius 
America  has  produced,  winner  of  Napoleonic  victo- 
ries, against  seemingly  impossible  odds,  heroic  and 
magnanimous  in  defeat,  as  in  victory,  Lee  devoted 
his  closing  years  to  healing  the  scars  of  the  fratricidal 
conflict  and  educating  the  youth  of  his  beloved  State 
to  be  citizens  of  our  America. 

Lincoln,  child  of  the  forest,  born  of  the  poorest  of 
the  poor  nomadic  families  of  the  frontier;  gaunt 
backwoodsman,  splitting  rails  and  winning  wrestling 
matches ;  with  utter  native  integrity  of  character,  in- 
dustriously self-taught;  the  melancholy  sombreness 
of  his  spirit  tempered  and  sweetened  by  a  marvelous 
wealth  of  humor;  Lincoln  slowly  matured  in  self- 
mastery  and  climbed  step  by  step,  till  the  Nation  in 
its  most  tragic  crisis  gave  him  its  highest  office  and 
heaviest  burden.  Misunderstood,  calumniated  by 
slave-holder  and  Abolitionist  alike,  plotted  against 
by  fellow- servants  of  his  cause,  unhating,  unshaken, 


INTRODUCTION  9 

unhastened,  Lincoln  held  the  balance  true,  slowly 
emerged  the  consecrated  defender  of  "the  white  man's 
charter  of  liberties,"  the  recreator  of  the  Union,  in 
character  and  spirit  the  prophet  of  that  democracy 
America  is  sometime  to  be. 

With  such  a  constellation  in  our  spiritual  heritage, 
may  we  not  be  humble  and  proud  of  our  America,  and 
should  we  not  waken  and  consecrate  ourselves  to 
carry  on  and  out  the  greatest,  most  daring  and  most 
hopeful  experiment  in  democracy  mankind  has  at- 
tempted? 


WASHINGTON:    THE  FIRST  AMERICAN 


T 


IODAY,  more  than  ever,  we  are  awed  by  the 
marvel  of  America.    Leaping  forward,  with  diz- 
zying rapidity,  in  business  organization,  inven- 
tion and  applied  science,  wealth  and  power;    attain- 
ing a  dazzling  height  in  international  leadership,  yet 
seeking  to  use  her  power  wholly   for  comity  and 
From  the  initial     peace ;  watch-towers  of  commerce  rising  innumerably 
Continent, °onward,  m  ner  countless  cities ;   possessing  more  than  half  of 
America  the  ^he  newer  equipments  of  civilization,  in  use  over  the 

growing  marvel  ^      * 

of  the  world.  whole  world;   great,  swift-growing  Colossus,  grossly 

sensual,  but  far-dreaming  and  high-visioned,  brooded 
over  by  vast  ideals :  America  is  the  bewildering  mar- 
vel of  mankind. 

The  wonder  began  with  the  initial  discovery  and 

Effect  of  suddenly  early  settlement  of  America.     Never  before  had  a 

continent  tcTthe      whole   new   continent   suddenly   been   added   to   the 

known  world.  knowledge  and  imagination  of  the  world,  with  the 

opportunity  to  transplant  already  highly  developed 

civilization,  to  exploit  its  virgin  resources. 

Several  nations  were  concerned  in  the  early  settle- 
Nations  taking  ment.  Spain  came,  largely  exploring,  but  with  set- 
settiement  of  tlements  in  the  South  and  claims  to  vast  territory. 

The  French  were  also  chiefly  explorers ;  but  settling 
in  Canada,  they  extended  those  long  lines  of  posts, 

10 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  11 

down  through  the  middle  wilderness,  trading  with  the 
Indians  to  the  benefit  of  both  races.  It  was,  however,  ^sesesS?gSthe 
the  English,  with  the  Scotch  and  Irish,  and  in  lesser  fXnYzatton, 
measure  the  Dutch  and  Germans,  who  came  to  live 
permanently  in  the  new  world :  building  their  homes, 
tilling  their  farms,  extending  their  hamlets  ever  fur- 
ther inland.  At  the  time  Washington  was  born 
(1732)  there  were  some  600,000  English-speaking  set- 
tlers in  the  colonies  scattered  up  and  down  the  At- 
lantic coast. 

Virginia  particularly  attracted  the  English,  espe- 
cially those  of  the  lesser  nobility.     The  temperate  Reasons  why 

.  Virginia 

climate,  fertile  soil,  early  introduction  of  negro  slav-  particularly 
ery,  making  possible  something  of  the  aristocratic  English. 
life  they  had  known  in  England,  and  the  wide  de- 
mand for  the  staple  products,  tobacco  and  the  cereals : 
all  made  Virginia  alluring  to  the  English. 

Washington's  great-grandfather  and  the  latter's 
brother  came  over  about  1656,  apparently  to  escape 
the  Cromwell  regime,  since  they  were  of  the  lesser 
nobility  and  devoted  to  the  King  and  Crown.  The  waThtngtol 
great-grandfather  was  a  vigorous  type  of  man,  a  suc- 
cessful Indian  fighter,  winning  from  the  Indians  the 
name  "Conotocarius"  or  "Devourer  of  Villages"  in 
consequence.  His  grandson,  Augustine,  extended  his 
land  holdings,  became  interested  in  iron  mines  to  the  The  family  of 

.  .  fl  i  n  i  ii-       Washington's 

west,  was  twice  married,  having  four  children  by  his   father. 
first  wife  and  six  by  the  second ;  George  Washington 
being  the  eldest  of  the  second  brood,  born  at  Wake- 


12  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

field,    Westmoreland    County,    Virginia,    February 
22nd,  1732. 

Washington's  mother,  Mary  Ball,  was  a  forceful, 
Washington's  commanding  personality.  She  seems  to  have  had  for 
relation  ato  her!  her  eldest  son  a  strong  affection,  but  rather  of  the 
possessive,  demanding  type;  and  as  the  years  went 
by,  she  apparently  grew  increasingly  querulous  and 
complaining.  While  Washington  fulfilled  his  duties 
toward  her  with  scrupulous  fidelity  and  generosity, 
there  could  have  been  little  opportunity  for  great  ten- 
derness in  the  relationship.  His  letters  to  her  suffi- 
ciently evidence  this. 

When  Washington  was  a  lad  of  eleven  his  father 
Consequences  to      died;  and  this  changed  his  whole  outlook  on  life.  Vir- 

Washington  of  his  ° 

father's  early  ginia  had  taken  over  the  British  laws  on  primogeni- 
ture and  entail,  so  that  estates  passed  regularly  to  the 
eldest  son.  Washington's  older  half-brothers  had 
both  been  sent  to  school  in  England;  and  he  doubt- 
less would  have  followed  had  his  father  lived.  It  is 
true,  one  farm  was  left  jointly  to  Washington  and 
his  mother ;  but  she  retained  it,  and  he  seems  to  have 
had  no  income  from  it  during  her  long  life-time. 
Thus,  while  welcome  in  his  mother's  home  and  those 

dosfng  lthsixtefn.  of  his  half -brothers,  Washington  was  practically 
thrown  upon  his  own  resources  at  the  age  of  eleven. 
The  result  was  meager  schooling,  closing  definitely 
at  sixteen.  Washington  was  strong  in  mathematics, 
poor  in  language  work,  of  which  he  had  very  little, 
and   particularly  weak  in   spelling   and   grammar; 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  13 

which  doubtless  will  comfort  many  a  young  student 
of  the  present  time. 

With  this  limited  schooling,  Washington  was  re- 
markably well  educated:   please  note  the  distinction  Excellent 
between  the  two  terms.     His  education  came  from  ^nffoid1  fr°m 
his  many-sided  and  incessant  activities.    Early  he  de-  activities. 
veloped  his  interest  in  hunting  and  fishing,  and  he 
practiced  those  vigorous  out-door  activities,  at  every 
opportunity,  all  his  life.    Then  came  his  work  as  sur- 
veyor, Indian  fighting,  with  numerous  expeditions  Sources  of 
through  the  wilderness,  his  career  as  military  leader 
and  statesman,  and  his  life-long  successful  activity 
as  farmer  and  business  man. 

Then,  too,  as  a  Viriginia  aristocrat,  Washington 
had  constant  association  with  the  most  cultivated  men 
and  women  of  the  colony;  and  he  studied  their  con- 
versation, endeavoring  to  improve  his  own  speech  and 
written  expression.  Moreover,  while  never  a  rapid 
or  wide  reader,  Washington  was  a  thoughtful  and  character  of 

?  -n-ii        Washington's 

earnest  one;  and  he  read  solid  literature.  Early  he  limited  reading. 
had  access  to  Lord  Fairfax's  good  library.  Later, 
we  find  him  ordering  books  from  England.  Those 
lists  make  interesting  reading:  treatises  on  govern- 
ment, agriculture,  solid  histories :  such  were  the  books 
he  read  through  the  years. 

Washington  was  always  sensitive  regarding  the 
defects  in  his  schooling;  and  it  is  one  of  the  pathetic 
facts  of  his  biography,  which  helps  to  make  him  more 
human,  that  late  in  life,  after  he  had  led  the  country 
through  the  Revolution  and  been  twice  President  of 


14 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Mount  Vernon: 
Washington's 
home  from  the 
age  of  sixteen. 


The  valuable 
friendship  with 
Lord  Fairfax. 


the  infant  nation,  knowing  that  his  writings  would 
be  published  and  read,  he  began  going  over  the  letters 
and  other  documents,  written  in  young  manhood,  and 
carefully  correcting  them  in  grammar,  spelling  and 
style ! 

At  sixteen,  he  went  definitely  to  live  at  the  home 
of  his  half-brother,  Lawrence,  who  had  inherited  the 
large  estate  which  he  renamed  Mount  Vernon,  in 
honor  of  Admiral  Vernon,  under  whom  he  had  served 
in  the  war  between  England  and  Spain.  The  adjoin- 
ing estate,  Belvoir,  was  occupied  by  a  younger  mem- 
ber of  the  Fairfax  family,  agent  for  his  family's  great 
land  holdings  in  the  new  world.  Lawrence  had  mar- 
ried a  daughter  of  this  household,  thus  uniting  the 
two  families. 

About  the  time  Washington  went  to  live  at  Mount 
Vernon,  there  came  over  from  England,  Lord  Fair- 
fax, head  of  the  family,  a  sixty-year-old,  cultivated, 
worldly,  disappointed  English  nobleman,  to  look  after 
his  estates;  and  he  went  to  live  at  Belvoir.  At  once 
a  warm  attachment  developed  between  the  sixty  years 
old  British  nobleman  and  the  sixteen  years  old  George 
Washington.  The  two  hunted  and  fished  together; 
Washington  had  his  first  wide  contact  with  books  in 
Lord  Fairfax's  excellent  library;  and  the  nobleman 
was  so  impressed  with  the  young  Washington  that  he 
commissioned  him  to  Gross  the  Blue  Ridge  mountains 
and  survey  Lord  Fairfax's  great  land  holdings,  ex- 
tending up  the  Shenandoah  valley  and  beyond. 

At  sixteen,  Washington  was  already  six  feet  tall: 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  15 

a  spare  young  giant.  He  ultimately  became  six  feet 
two  inches  in  height,  with  a  large  frame  and  enormous 
hands  and  feet.  His  gloves  were  usually  made  to 
order :  those  on  the  market  not  being  large  enough.  Washington's  sizd 
He  wore  regularly  shoes  size  eleven  and  military  boots  institution? 
of  thirteen;  and  his  wrists  and  ankles  were  so  large 
as  everywhere  to  attract  comment.  He  had  the  phys- 
ical strength  that  went  with  this  large  organism.  One 
of  the  stories  that  has  come  down  to  us,  told  by  a  com- 
rade of  the  Revolution,  is  that  Washington's  military 
tent  with  its  poles,  required  two  men  to  lift  it  into  the 
wagon  for  transportation;  but  that  Washington 
could  seize  it  with  one  hand  and  throw  it,  poles  and 
all,  into  the  wagon. 

At  sixteen,  then,  Washington  and  a  young  Fairfax 
crossed  the  Blue  Ridge,  had  weeks  of  adventure  in 
the  wilderness ;  but  did  the  surveying  so  satisfactorily 
that  Lord  Fairfax  was  greatly  pleased,  crossed  the  Experiences  in 
Blue  Ridge  and  built  himself  a  hunting  lodge,  which  LordFafrfax. 
he  occupied  as  a  residence  for  a  time,  and  secured  for 
Washington  appointment  as  public  surveyor.  More- 
over, I  am  told  by  persons  living  in  that  part  of  Vir- 
ginia, that  deeds  for  land  today,  in  all  that  section,  go 
back  to  the  lines  run  by  George  Washington,  at  the 
age  of  sixteen:  a  signal  illustration  of  the  thorough- 
ness and  faithfulness  with  which  Washington  did  all 
the  work  assigned  to  him. 

From  sixteen  to  nineteen,  Washington  worked  as 
public  surveyor,  saving  his  money  and  buying  land.  Work  as  public 
When  he  was  nineteen,  his  brother  Lawrence  found 


16 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  visit  to  the 
West  Indies. 


Inheritance  of 
Mount  Vernon. 


himself  afflicted  with  tuberculosis ;  and  decided  to  go 
to  the  West  Indies  in  the  hope  of  a  cure,  taking  his 
younger  half-brother  with  him.  They  knew  little 
about  handling  tuberculosis  in  those  days;  he  possi- 
bly could  have  gone  nowhere  worse ;  but  he  chose  the 
West  Indies. 

It  was  Washington's  first  opportunity  for  a  look 
out  on  the  big  world ;  for  the  West  Indies  were  well 
in  advance  of  the  mainland  in  cultivation.  Here, 
Washington  saw  his  first  play  upon  the  stage  and 
heard  his  first  theater  music.  Immediately  upon  ar- 
rival, the  Washington  brothers  were  invited  to  dine 
with  Major  Clarke.  Washington  says  that  he  was 
reluctant  to  accept,  as  there  was  small-pox  in  the  Ma- 
jor's family.  In  those  days,  however,  a  little  thing 
such  as  small-pox  could  not  stand  in  the  way  of  social 
etiquette ;  so  the  Washington  brothers  accepted,  din- 
ing repeatedly  at  Major  Clarke's,  and  Washington 
promptly  took  the  small-pox.  Though  speedily  re- 
covering, he  was  pockmarked,  in  consequence,  for  life. 

Returning,  Lawrence  was  no  better;  and  indeed, 
he  died  a  few  months  later,  when  George  was  twenty. 
He  had  formed  such  respect,  as  well  as  affection,  for 
his  younger  brother  that  he  left  Washington  guardian 
of  Lawrence's  young  daughter;  with  the  provision 
that,  if  she  died,  Washington  was  to  inherit  Mount 
Vernon.  That  death  following  shortly  after,  Wash- 
ing did  inherit  Mount  Vernon;  and  it  became  the 
foundation  of  his  large  fortune. 

Lawrence,  moreover,  having  served  in  war,  had 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  17 

brought  to  Mount  Vernon  Adjutant  Muse  of  the 

Virginia  army  and  Jacob  van  Braam,  a  Dutch  soldier 

of  fortune.    It  was  from  the  latter  that  Washington 

had  his  first  training  in  sword-play  and  instruction  Washington's 

in  military  science.     Lawrence  had  further  secured  trLmn^and7 

his  brother's  appointment  on  the  Virginia  staff,  with  associations. 

the  rank  of  Major.     As  a  result,  Washington,  at 

twenty-one,  was  commissioned  by  the  Governor  of 

Virginia  to  proceed  to  the  headwaters  of  the  Ohio 

and  warn  the  French  commander  that  the  French 

were  intruding  on  British  and  Virginia  rights. 

The  situation  is  easily  understood :  the  French  had 
extended  that  long  line  of  trading  posts,  from  Can- 
ada through  the  middle  wilderness.    Since  their  trade  Situation  of  the 

British   spttlprs 

with  the  Indians  was  profitable  to  both  races  and  they  in  relation  to  the 
did  not  dispossess  the  Indians  of  their  lands,  the  In-  fnr|i^s.an<i 
dians  were  generally  friendly  to  them.  The  English, 
on  the  other  hand,  were  extending  their  farms  and 
settlements  ever  further  into  the  wilderness,  push- 
ing the  Indians  back,  with  their  consequent  enmity, 
though  it  was  for  the  good  of  the  country  that  the  set- 
tlements should  be  made. 

Washington  took  Van  Braam,  Adjutant  Muse,  a 
celebrated  guide,  Christopher  Gist,  and  four  woods- 
men; and  proceeded  on  horseback  through  the  six 
hundred  miles  of  wilderness.  He  pushed  on  from  Washington's 
the  headwaters  of  the  Ohio,  north  within  thirty  miles  f0r8theXOhio!i0n 
of  Lake  Erie;  warned  the  French  commander; 
showed  his  shrewd  native  intelligence  in  a  partially 
successful  struggle  with  the  French  for  the  friend- 


18  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

ship  of  the  Indians;  and  was  puzzled  at  being  called 
by  the  Indians  "Conotocarius" :  their  identification 
of  him  with  that  earlier  "Devourer  of  Villages",  his 
fighting  great-grandfather. 

Leaving  the  others  to  come  with  the  ailing  horses, 

Thrilling  Washington  and  the  guide  returned  on  foot,  with 

many  adventures.  They  narrowly  escaped  death  at 
the  hands  of  treacherous  Indians;  were  overturned 
from  a  raft  in  the  icy  waters  of  a  river,  and  had  to 
sleep  all  night  in  frozen  clothes.  On  arrival  at  Wil- 
liamsburg, the  Governor  asked  for  a  written  report. 
Washington  had  kept  his  Journal  so  carefully  that 
he  was  able  to  furnish  it  in  twenty-four  hours.     It 

The  Journal  of       was  published  as  an  official  document,  and  widely 

of  the  expedition,  i       •         i        ^    i       •  i  •-n-ii 

published  as  an      read,  not  only  in  the  Colonies,  but  in  England  and 
document!^  France,  as  it  was  one  of  the  first  authentic  accounts 

of  conditions  in  the  new  world  for  British  and  French 

eyes. 

That  Journal  makes  interesting  reading  today,  for 

one  reason:    there  is  not  an  introspective  line  in  it. 

When  one  keeps  a  diary  of  vivid  experiences,  one  is 
No  introspection     apt  to  put  down  at  least  occasional  passages  of  reflec- 

m  Washington.  r  r  r  o 

tion,  expressing  one's  inner  moods.  It  is  character- 
istic of  Washington  that  such  a  passage  is  hard  to  find 
in  all  the  numerous  volumes  of  his  writings.  This  is 
notably  true  of  the  four  large  volumes  of  his  surviv- 
Characteristics  ing  Diaries.  There  are  bald  records  of  the  weather, 
his  farming  operations,  visits  and  schedules  of  guests, 
even  across  the  years  when  the  struggle  with  England 
was  developing,  and  his  mind  must  have  been  ab- 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  19 

sorbed  in  the  great  problems  involved.  So  later  on, 
he  records,  day  by  day,  his  attendance  at  the  Consti- 
tutional Convention,  with  no  single  word  about  the 
great  questions  so  bitterly  fought  over  in  the  Conven- 
tion. 

A  culminating  example  of  this  characteristic  is  in 
the  diary  reference  to  the  death  of  his  step-daughter, 
Patsy  Custis.  Washington  was  deeply  attached  to 
her,  and  grieved  over  her  unfortunate  affliction  (epi- 
lepsy). When  she  died  in  young  womanhood,  the 
diary  entry  for  June  19,  1773,  reads:  "At  home  all 
day.  About  five  o'clock  poor  Patcy  Custis  Died  Sud- 
denly."* 

Washington's  mind  was  wholly  objective,  grasping 
facts,  things  as  they  are,  and  dominantly  interested  in  character  of 
action.     It  was  this  quality  of  his  intellect  that  gave  Washington's 
him  his  accurate  judgment  of  men  and  events,  and 
on  the  basis  of  his  moral  integrity,  explains  his  suc- 
cessful leadership  in  so  many  fields. 

Washington  was  not  without  humor,  though  he 
had  far  less  of  it  than  Franklin.  The  following  entry 
for  one  day  in  the  Diary,  given  in  full,  is  character- 
istic in  the  items  recorded,  and  is  also  one  of  the  best 
examples  of  the  rather  dry  type  of  humor  that  marked 
Washington : 

"A  Small  fine  Rain  from  No.  Et.  wet  the  Top  of  my 
Hay  that  had  been  landed  last  Night.     It  was  all  carted 


*  Washington,  Diaries,  Vol.  II,  p.  115.  See  Book  List  on  pp.  348-355 
for  full  information  regarding  publisher,  place  and  date  of  publication 
of  all  volumes  quoted. 


20 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Diary  entry 
evidencing 
Washington's 
humor. 


The  second  Ohio 
expedition. 


up  however  to  the  Barn  and  the  wet  and  dry  separated. 

"Went  to  a  Ball  at  Alexandria,  where  Musick  and 
Dancing  was  the  chief  Entertainment.  However  in  a 
convenient  Room  detached  for  the  purpose  abounded 
great  plenty  of  Bread  and  Butter,  some  Biscuits  with 
Tea,  and  Coffee  which  the  Drinkers  of  coud  not  Dis- 
tinguish from  Hot  water  sweetened.  ...  Be  it  remembered 
that  pockethandkerchiefs  servd  the  purposes  of  Table 
Cloths  and  Napkins  and  that  no  Apologies  were  made 
for  either. 

"The  Proprietors  of  this  Ball  were  Messrs.  Carlyle, 
Laurie  and  Robt.  Wilson,  but  the  Doctr.  not  getting  it 
conducted  agreeable  to  his  own  taste  would  claim  no 
share  of  the  merit  of  it. 

"I  shall  therefore  distinguish  this  Ball  by  the  Stile 
and  title  of  the  Bread  and  Butter  Ball."  * 

At  twenty-two,  Washington  was  again  sent  to  the 
Ohio,  as  Lt.  Colonel,  second  in  command  of  an  ex- 
pedition to  relieve  the  fort,  which  had  been  erected 
at  the  junction  of  the  Monongahela  and  Allegheny 
rivers,  on  the  site  selected  by  Washington  during  the 
first  journey.  The  commander's  death,  in  the  course 
of  the  expedition,  left  Washington  in  sole  charge. 
He  arrived  too  late  to  relieve  the  fort,  which  had  al- 
ready been  surrendered ;  but  pushed  on  with  a  detach- 
ment of  troops,  surprised  a  body  of  French  and  In- 
dians, won  the  skirmish,  in  which  the  French  com- 
mander and  a  number  of  soldiers  were  killed,  and  took 
some  prisoners.  It  was  concerning  this  battle  that 
Washington  wrote  of  his  pleasure  in  "hearing  the  bul- 


*  Washington,   Entry   in    Diary   for   Friday,   Feb.    15th,    1760,    with 
orthography  of  original:   Diaries,  Vol.  I,  p.   126. 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  21 

lets  whistling  by  him."  Washington  was  a  born 
fighter,  he  loved  a  battle ;  yet  he  so  deprecated  war  that 
this  is  the  only  passage  one  finds  in  his  writings  ex-  View  of  war 

i      ,,i  i  -1      ,i  versus  agriculture, 

pressing  joy  in  battle,  while  there  are  numerous  para- 
graphs in  which  he  contrasts  destructive  warfare  with 
the  peaceful,  constructive  work  of  agriculture,  which 
he  regarded  as  the  natural  vocation  of  man. 

A  fort  was  hastily  built  on  Great  Meadows — ap- 
propriately "Fort  Necessity";  but  Washington  had 
too  few  troops,  and  was  obliged  honorably  to  surren- 
der it  and  return.  Then  the  British  government  took 
over  the  war;  and  Washington  promptly  resigned 
his  commission.  Why?  Because  the  British  military 
red-tape  put  the  lowest  regular  British  officer  above  Relation  of 

,  .    ,  ,       .    ,  „r         .  .ii       colonial  to  British 

the  highest  colonial  one.     Washington  was  singularly  officers, 
selfless,  without  self-seeking  personal  ambition;  but 
he  had  deep  reverence  for  the  offices  to  which  he  was 
called;    and  always  demanded  full  respect  for  those 
offices.     He  was  unwilling,  therefore,  as  a  Virginia 
Colonel,  to  be  subordinated  to  every  British  Second  Washington's 
Lieutenant.     General  Braddock,  however,   now  in  Sgnity7  and 
command  of  the  expedition  against  the  French  and 
Indians,  was  unwilling  to  lose  from  his  forces  the  best 
fighter  in  Virginia,  and  probably  in  America ;  and  he 
urged  Washington  to  take  a  place  on  his  personal 
staff,  with  the  rank  of  colonel.     This  relieving  him 
from   the   resented    subordination,   Washington    ac-  Braddock's 
cepted;   and  so  accompanied  Braddock  on  that  long, 
slow  expedition  to  the  West.    Repeatedly,  Washing- 
ton warned  General  Braddock  to  beware  of  an  Indian 


22 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Warning  Braddock 
of  an  Indian 
ambuscade. 


The  ill-fated 

Braddock 

campaign. 


Washington's 
service. 


Lessons  from  the 

Braddock 

expedition. 


ambuscade;  and  Benjamin  Franklin,  twenty-six 
years  older,  and  thus  an  apparently  more  authorita- 
tive counsellor,  also  warned  him.  Braddock  ridiculed 
the  warnings :  said  that  might  all  be  true  for  colonials ; 
but  those  savages  could  not  stand  up  a  moment  before 
British  regulars.  You  know  what  happened:  as  the 
expedition  reached  the  point  where  Braddock,  Penn- 
sylvania, is  today,  the  ambuscade,  of  which  Washing- 
ton had  forewarned  the  General,  occurred.  The  Brit- 
ish regulars  were  thrown  into  a  wild  panic,  nearly  as 
many  falling  as  made  up  the  entire  force  of  French 
and  Indians  surprising  them.  It  was  the  colonial 
officer,  George  Washington,  who  rallied  the  panic- 
stricken  British  regulars,  had  the  wounded  General 
Braddock  carried  off  the  battlefield,  conducted  the 
retreat  of  the  British  army,  and  read  the  burial  serv- 
ice over  the  dead  body  of  General  Braddock. 

It  was  all  an  illuminating  experience  for  Washing- 
ton: it  taught  him  that  British  regulars  could  be  de- 
feated. That  means  more  than  may  appear.  There 
was  at  that  time,  among  the  colonists,  much  the  same 
abject  reverence  for  the  British  army  that  most  of 
the  outside  world  had  for  the  German  army  before 
the  World  War:  the  notion  that  it  was  so  perfectly 
trained  and  equipped  that  it  could  not  be  defeated. 
Washington  learned  from  the  Braddock  expedition 
not  only  that  British  regulars  could  be  defeated,  but 
that  their  training  really  unfitted  them  for  the  condi- 
tions of  warfare  in  the  New  World.  It  was  all  most 
instructive  experience  for  his  later  career. 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  23 

Returning  home,  Washington  was  offered  the  com- 
mand of  the  Virginia  forces.  He  accepted;  but  to  be 
relieved  of  subordination  to  British  sub-officers,  jour- 
neyed in  state  to  Boston,  to  see  General  Shirley,  in  The  journey  to 
command  of  the  British  forces.  He  stopped,  on  the  Boston- 
way,  at  Philipse  Manor,  on  the  Hudson ;  was  greatly 
drawn  to  Mary  Philipse,  daughter  of  the  family; 
would  have  courted  the  lady,  had  she  been  willing, 
which  apparently  she  was  not. 

The  desired  relief  obtained,  Washington  returned 
to  Virginia,  for  a  couple  of  years  of  desultory  Indian  Further 
fighting,  dealing  with  government  incompetency,  Washington  for 
learning  to  control  his  fierce  temper.  Washington 
had  a  terrible  temper;  but  so  mastered  it  that  there 
are  but  few  occasions,  afterwards,  when  that  temper 
exploded;  and  then  usually  with  adequate  cause  and 
excellent  effect,  as  we  shall  see. 

The  defeat  of  the  French  in  Canada  led  them  to 
throw  up  the  war;  and,  at  twenty-six,  Washington 
was  sent  again  to  the  Ohio,  to  take  over  the  aban- 
doned Fort  Duquesne;  which  he  renamed  Fort  Pitt, 
thus  giving  the  site  and  name  to  the  present  great 
city  of  Pittsburgh. 

A  few  months  before  this  last  journey  to  the  Ohio, 
Washington  had  ridden,  with  a  friend,  to  Williams-  Personal  life, 
burg,  the  colonial  Capital,  and  stopped  on  the  way 
to  call  on  Martha  Dandridge  Custis,  a  handsome  and 
wealthy  young  widow,  with  two  children.  Washing- 
ton was  instantly  smitten.  All  his  life  Washington 
had  great  tenderness  for  the  other  sex.     There  had 


24 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Washington's 
appreciation  of 
the  other  sex. 


Diary  comments 
of  the  New- 
England  journey. 


Diary  entries  of 
the  Southern  tour. 


been  several  early  love-affairs:  one  for  that  "Low- 
land Beauty,"  to  whom  Washington  wrote  some  very 
loving  but  rather  clumsy  verses;  and  who  some  biog- 
raphers think  was  the  girl  afterwards  marrying  one 
of  the  Virginia  Lees,  and  becoming  the  mother  of 
Light  Horse  Harry  Lee,  Washington's  beloved 
young  comrade  of  the  Revolution  and  the  father  of 
Robert  E.  Lee.  It  is,  further,  one  of  the  quaint 
facts  of  Washington's  later  biography  that,  after  at- 
tending any  ball  or  other  social  function,  especially 
on  his  presidential  tours,  he  carefully  noted  down  in 
his  Diary  the  number  of  handsome  ladies  present. 
One  reads:  "There  were  upwards  of  100  ladies. 
Their  appearance  was  elegant,  and  many  of  them 
very  handsome."*  Again:  "Went  to  an  Assembly, 
where  there  was  at  least  an  hundred  handsome  and 
well  dressed  Ladies."*  "At  half  after  seven  I  went 
to  the  Assembly,  where  there  were  about  75  well 
dressed,  and  many  of  them  very  handsome  ladies — 
among  whom  (as  was  also  the  case  at  the  Salem  and 
Boston  assemblies)  were  a  greater  proportion  with 
much  blacker  hair  than  are  usually  seen  in  the  South- 
ern States."* 

The  above  comments  are  all  from  Washington's 
New  England  tour.  On  his  Southern  journey,  he  is 
even  more  enthusiastic:  "Was  visited  about  2  o'clock, 
by  a  great  number  of  the  most  respectable  ladies  of 
Charleston — the  first  honor  of  the  kind  I  had  ever 


Washington,  Diaries,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  38,  40,  45. 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  25 

experienced  and  it  was  as  flattering  as  it  was  singu- 
lar".* "Dined  with  a  very  large  Company  at  the 
Governor's,  and  in  the  evening  went  to  a  Concert  at 
the  Exchange  at  wch.  there  were  at  least  400  ladies 
the  number  and  appearance  of  wch.  exceeded  any 
thing  of  the  kind  I  had  ever  seen."*  "In  the  evening 
went  to  a  very  elegant  dancing  Assembly  at  the 
Exchange,  at  which  were  256  elegantly  dressed  and 
handsome  ladies."*  One  recognizes  that,  North  and 
South,  all  the  ladies  present  at  a  social  gathering 
were  handsome,  in  the  appreciative  eyes  of  George 
Washington. 

At  the  call  on  Martha  Custis,  however,  Washing- 
ton was  completely  taken.  He  stayed  long  past  the 
hour  intended,  returned  from  the  Capital  as  quickly  Marriage  with 
as  possible ;  engagement  followed  in  a  few  days'  time,  Martha  Dandridge 
and  marriage,  some  months  later,  as  Washington 
approached  the  age  of  twenty-seven.  His  marriage 
brought  him  a  large  increase  of  property  in  both  land 
and  slaves,  thus  further  extending  and  assuring  his 
growing  financial  fortune. 

Washington  was  a  devoted  and  thoughtfully  courte- 
ous husband,  through  all  the  years  of  his  life,  and  an  Washington  as 
affectionate  father  to  his  step-children.     When  the  father  to  his 
daughter  died,  in  young  womanhood,  after  her  long  step.grandcMid^en. 
and  sad  affliction,  Washington  grieved  as  if  she  had 
been  his  own.    The  boy  grew  up  to  manhood,  married, 
much  earlier  than  his  foster-father  thought  wise,  and 


♦Washington,  Diaries,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  172,  173. 


26 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Letters  to  G.  W. 
Parke  Custis,  who 
was  to  be  Robert 
E.  Lee's  father- 
in-law. 


Washington's 
rules  and  advice 
for  his  step- 
grandson. 


Emphasis  on 
system  and 
order. 


had  four  children.  He  gave  his  step-father  consider- 
able trouble  and  anxiety,  during  his  adolescent  years ; 
and  Washington  handled  him  with  as  much  affection 
as  an  own  father  could  have  shown,  and  rather  more 
wisdom.  After  Jack  Custis's  death,  the  last  year  of 
the  Revolution,  Washington  showed  the  same  combi- 
nation of  affection  and  wisdom  toward  the  step-grand- 
children, adopting  two  of  them  as  his  own,  after  he 
had  become  convinced  he  was  not  to  have  a  direct 
child.  His  letters  to  the  young  Washington  Custis, 
full  of  wise  counsel,  show  what  serious  thought  he 
gave  to  the  problems  of- the  youth's  restless  adoles- 
cence. Compare,  for  instance,  the  following,  interest- 
ing further  as  giving  Washington's  view  of  the  wise 
conduct  of  life : 

"System  in  all  things  should  be  aimed  at ;  for  in 
execution  it  renders  everything  more  easy. 

"If  now  and  then,  of  a  morning  before  breakfast, 
you  are  inclined  by  way  of  change,  to  go  out  with  a 
gun,  I  shall  not  object  to  it;  provided  you  return  by 
the  hour  we  usually  set  down  to  that  meal. 

"From  breakfast,  until  about  an  hour  before  dinner 
(allowing  for  dressing  and  preparing  for  it,  that  you 
may  appear  decent)  I  shall  expect  you  will  confine  your- 
self to  your  studies,  and  diligently  attend  to  them; 
endeavoring  to  make  yourself  master  of  whatever  is 
recommended  to,  or  required  of  you. 

"While  the  afternoons  are  short,  and  but  little  interval 
between  rising  from  dinner  and  assembling  for  tea,  you 
may  employ  that  time  in  walking,  or  any  other  recre- 
ation. 

"After  tea,  if  the  studies  you  are  engaged  in  require 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  27 

it,  you  will  no  doubt  perceive  the  propriety  and 
advantage  of  returning  to  them,  until  the  hour  of  rest. 

"Rise  early,  that  by  habit  it  may  become  familiar, 
agreeable,  healthy  and  profitable.  It  may,  for  a  while, 
be  irksome  to  do  this,  but  that  will  wear  off;  and  the 
practice  will  produce  a  rich  harvest  forever  thereafter; 
whether  in  public  or  private  walks  of  life. 

"Make  it  an  invariable  rule  to  be  in  place   (unless        An  important  rule 

extraordinarv  circumstances  prevent  it)    at  the  usual        for  family 
t    •  i  i  -r      •  i  happiness! 

breakfasting,   dining   and   tea   hours.      It    is    not   only 

disagreeable,  but  it  is  also  very  inconvenient  for  servants 
to  be  running  here  and  there,  and  they  know  not  where, 
to  summon  you  to  them,  when  their  duties,  and  attend- 
ance on  the  company  who  are  seated,  render  it  improper. 

"Saturday  may  be  appropriated  to  riding;  to  your 
gun,  and  other  proper  amusements. 

"Time  disposed  of  in  this  manner,  makes  ample  View  of  the  right 
provision  for  exercise,  and  every  useful  or  necessary  use  °  time* 
recreation;  at  the  same  time  that  the  hours  allotted 
for  study,  if  really  applied  to  it  instead  of  running 
up  and  down  stairs,  and  wasted  in  conversation  with 
anyone  who  will  talk  with  you,  will  enable  you  to  make 
considerable  progress  in  whatever  line  is  marked  out  for 
you,  and  that  you  may  do  it,  is  my  sincere  wish."* 

The  year  before  his  marriage,  Washington  had  been 
a  candidate  for  the  office  of  burgess,  or  member  of 
the  Virginia  Assembly,  and  had  been  defeated.  The 
following  year  he  stood  again;  and  learning  by  ex- 
perience, adopted  the  conventional  campaigning  ^wSh^ton's 
methods  of  those  days.  The  number  of  constituents  first  election  as 
to  be  conciliated  was  small,  as  a  considerable  property 


*  Washington,   Letter   of  January   7th,    1798,   to   George   Washington 
Parke  Custis:    Writings,  Vol.  XIII,  pp.  436,  437. 


28 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Reception  by  the 
Assembly. 


qualification  was  required  to  permit  one  to  vote  in 
colonial  Virginia.  Washington  kept  the  account  of 
his  campaign  expenses  carefully  with  his  own  hand, 
as,  indeed,  he  scrupulously  kept  all  his  accounts, 
through  all  the  years.  That  record  of  campaign  ex- 
penses is  interesting  reading  today.  The  first  item  is 
"40  Gallons  of  Rum  Punch",  the  second  is  "15  Gal- 
lons of  Wine" ;  and  the  list  goes  through  some  fifteen 
items,  all  of  drinkables.  Evidently  the  modest  flower 
of  Washington's  candidacy  was  not  allowed  to  wither 
from  the  drought! 

This  time  he  was  elected — almost  unanimously.  He 
entered  the  Assembly;  and,  to  his  surprise  and  em- 
barrassment, was  greeted  with  an  address  of  welcome 
and  thanks,  for  his  eminent  military  services  to  the 
Colony.  Always  a  modest  and  even  timid  man,  under 
such  circumstances,  Washington  rose  to  reply,  and 
was  speechless!  After  waiting  a  moment,  the  pre- 
siding officer  said:  "Sit  down,  Mr.  Washington,  your 
modesty  equals  your  valor,  and  that  surpasses  the 
power  of  any  language  I  possess."  The  incident  is 
characteristic,  revealing  Washington  as  a  man  of 
deeds,  rather  than  words,  though  later  he  learned  to 
use  words,  too,  effectively,  using  them  sometimes  like 
bullets,  as  we  shall  see. 

For  sixteen  consecutive  years  Washington  was  a 
burgess  in  the  Virginia  Assembly,  closing  that  serv- 
service  as  burgess.  -^  o^y  to  take  command  of  the  army  of  the  Revolu- 
tion. During  these  years,  he  was  also  on  the  Church 
Vestry,  which  had  much  to  do  with  local  government 


Washington's 
modesty. 


Sixteen  years  of 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  29 

in  Virginia:   far   too  much,   till   Thomas   Jefferson 
changed  all  that. 

Through  this  long  period,  Washington  was  living 
quietly  at  Mount  Vernon,  developing  his  estates.  It  yefren**  ^jm? 
is  interesting  that,  as  farmer  and  business  man,  he  these  years. 
showed  the  same  grasp  of  objective  facts,  of  things 
as  they  are,  that  marked  him  as  military  leader  and 
statesman.  Mount  Vernon  was  a  little  world  in  it- 
self, as  indeed,  a  great  estate  had  to  be  in  those  days. 

Washington,  like  nearly  all  the  intelligent  men 
born  under  it,  was  earnestly  opposed  to  the  institu- 
tion of  slavery.  He  recognized  that  it  was  both  un- 
economic and  immoral.  His  view  was  that  further 
importation  of  slaves  should  be  stopped  by  law,  and 
those  in  captivity  should  be  gradually  emancipated. 
In  his  Will,  he  provided  that  his  own  slaves  should  Handling  of  slaves 

x  #  _  and  view  of 

be  freed,  on  the  death  of  his  widow.     That  will  give  slavery. 
sufficiently  Washington's  views  on  slavery.     Never- 
theless, again  like  other  intelligent  men  born  into  the 
institution,  Washington  accepted  it  and  did  the  best 
he  could  with  it.     He  was  a  severe  but  just  slave- 
master,  getting  the  best  results  possible  out  of  the 
uneconomic  slave  labor.    Among  his  slaves  and  hired 
laborers    were    carpenters,    masons,     wheelwrights, 
weavers :  artisans  of  all  kinds.  Washington  gave  con- 
stant, rigorous  personal  supervision  to  the  running  Washington  as 
of  his  estates.    His  flour  was  accepted  on  the  British  bushfe^man. 
market  without  inspection,  recognized  as  the  best 
that  came  from  America.     In  spite  of  his  long  ab- 
sences from  home,  in  his  country's  service,  Washing- 


30 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Accumulating 
large  fortune. 


The  gathering 
storm- 


Attachment  of  the 
colonists  to  the 
home  land. 


Causes  of  the 
Revolution. 


ton  was  so  successful  in  handling  his  estates  and  busi- 
ness affairs  that  he  died  worth  perhaps  a  half  million 
dollars,  which  means  that  he  was  one  of  the  richest 
men  in  America;  and  all  his  wealth  had  been  accu- 
mulated by  intelligent  labor  and  honest  business 
methods. 

Meantime,  the  storm-clouds  were  gathering  for 
the  great  conflict  that  was  to  come.  After  the  French 
and  Indian  war,  Britain  found  herself  heavily  bur- 
dened with  debt,  a  considerable  part  of  which  had 
been  accumulated  in  the  war  to  defend  the  Colonies. 
It  seemed  only  just,  therefore,  that  the  colonists 
should  be  taxed  to  help  pay  this  debt.  To  this  the 
colonists  did  not  object.  On  the  contrary,  they  were 
most  loyal,  not  only  to  the  home  land  but  to  the  King 
and  Crown.  It  is  usually  true  that  colonials,  seeing 
the  home  country  across  the  distance  and  through  the 
mist  of  sentiment,  develop  a  peculiarly  warm  attach- 
ment to  it.  If  you  look  for  the  strongest  devotion 
to  the  British  King  today,  you  will  find  it,  not  in 
England,  but  in  Canada;  and  often  the  Irish  in  Amer- 
ica seem  more  enthusiastically  attached  to  the  Emer- 
ald Isle  than  those  who  still  live  on  the  "ould  sod." 

The  further  view  of  the  British  statesmen,  however, 
was  that  the  Colonies  were  Crown  possessions:  the 
King  owning  them,  or  granting  them  to  proprietors, 
could  do  as  he  pleased  with  them,  through  his  min- 
isters and  Parliament.  If  he  needed  money,  he  could 
take  it  from  the  Colonies,  by  arbitrary  taxation  meas- 
ures, without  consulting  the  inhabitants.    It  was  this 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  31 

that  aroused  the  intense  resentment  of  the  colonists. 

They  had  come  voluntarily  to  the  new  world,  endured 

its    hardships,    fought    the    Indians,    conquered    the  ConseqUGnces  of 

wilderness,  each  man  forced  to  depend  upon  himself,  viewing  the 

.  ,  Colonies  as  Crown 

with  such  compelled  cooperation  as  he  could  carry  possessions, 
out  with  his  scattered  neighbors.     The  result  was  the 
development    of    strong,    free    individuals,    clinging 
most  tenaciously  to  their  rights  as  English  freemen :  The  claim  of  the 
those  rights  wrung  slowly  from  tyranny,  through  a  sfme'fights  t? 
thousand  years  of  struggle  in  England.     It  was  not  ^eiJ  b™thers  ^ 
taxation  they  resented,  but  taxation  without  represen- 
tation. 

Similarly,  they  resented  the  seizing  and  carrying 
to  England  for  trial,  of  men  accused  of  crime,  espe- 
cially political  offenses ;  thus  denying  them  their  tradi- 
tional British  right  to  a  trial  by  a  jury  of  their  own 
peers.  The  home  government  further  cynically  used 
the  colonies  as  a  dumping  ground  for  criminals  of 
all  types,  to  the  exasperation  and  injury  of  the  in- 
habitants. 

To  understand  how  these  iniquitous  measures  could 
be  perpetrated,  one  must  remember  that  the  British  „ 

,  Corruption  of  the 

public  service  was,  at  the  time,  shockingly  corrupt.   British  public 

The  colonies  were  viewed  largely  as  political  "plums," 

to  be  used  to  reward  King's  favorites  or  successful 

politicians.     It  is  probable  that  the  British  public 

service  was  then  as  corrupt  as  ours  ever  has  been; 

and  that  is  a  large  statement.     Afterwards,  Britain 

cleaned  house,  more  thoroughly  than  we  ever  have; 


service. 


32 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  Stamp 
Act  of  1765. 


Effect  upon  the 
Colonies. 


The  Stamp  Act 
Congress,   meeting 
Oct.  7th,  1765. 


Repeal  of  the 
Stamp  Act,  with 
further  imposition 
of  "taxation 
without 
representation." 


but  the  corruption  of  her  public  service  was  one  cause 
of  Britain's  loss  of  her  Colonies. 

Needing  money,  and  acting  on  the  theory  of  the 
Colonies  as  royal  grants  or  possessions,  the  British 
government,  in  1765,  passed  the  Stamp  Act,  requir- 
ing taxation  stamps  on  all  legal  documents,  news- 
papers, pamphlets  and  other  articles;  and  denying 
jury  trial  to  offenders,  at  the  discretion  of  prosecutors. 
Bundles  of  the  stamped  documents  were  sent  over  to 
the  various  Colonies,  and  agents  appointed  for  their 
sale. 

The  result  was  an  outburst  of  indignation  through- 
out the  Colonies.  Public  meetings  of  protest  were 
held;  and  in  some  instances  the  stamped  papers  were 
seized  and  burned  in  public  bonfires.  The  colonists 
vowed  they  would  risk  the  legality  of  their  deeds,  wills 
and  marriage  licenses;  but  they  would  not  buy  the 
stamped  papers.  The  resentment  culminated  in  the 
Stamp  Act  Congress,  called  by  Massachusetts  and 
held  in  New  York,  with  delegates  from  nine  colonies. 
It  formulated  a  Declaration  of  Bights  and  Griev- 
ances, with  a  petition  to  King  and  Parliament. 

The  falling  off  in  trade  with  the  colonies  was  so 
great  that  British  merchants  brought  sufficient  pres- 
sure to  bear  on  Parliament  to  cause  the  repeal  of 
the  Act;  but  in  the  rescinding,  its  principle  was  re- 
affirmed. Then  Britain  tried  less  direct  methods. 
She  had  forbidden  the  colonists  to  manufacture  ar- 
ticles made  in  Britain  or  to  purchase  these  and  other 
imports,  except  from  British  merchants,  and  trans- 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  33 

ported  in  British  ships.  Then  the  needed  commodi- 
ties were  taxed  and  sent  over :  tea,  widely  used  in  the 
colonies,  was  a  conspicuous  example. 

Again  there  was  an  uproar  of  protest.  Washing- 
ton's own  vigorous  statement  well  illustrates  the 
colonial  attitude: 

"What  is  it  we  are  contending  against  ?    Is  it  against 
paying  the  duty  of  three  pence  per  pound  on  tea  because        Attitude  of 
burdensome  ?    No,  it  is  the  right  only  we  have  all  along  as  ing  on* 

disputed.  *  *  *  I  think  the  Parliament  of  Great  Britain 
hath  no  more  right  to  put  their  hands  into  my  pocket, 
without  my  consent,  than  I  have  to  put  my  hands  into 
yours  for  money".* 

In  May,  1769,  the  Virginia  Assembly  passed  reso- 
lutions of  protest  against  the  British  treatment  of 
Massachusetts.  The  Assembly  was  promptly  dis- 
solved by  the  Royal  Governor;  but  the  members  met 
at  Raleigh's  Tavern,  near  by,  and  passed  a  series  of  Resolutions  of  the 
resolutions,  of  which  the  chief  item  was  an  agree-  m^ST 
ment  not  to  buy  tea  or  other  taxed  articles.  Many, 
of  course,  did  not  fulfill  the  agreement;  they  wanted 
tea,  shrugged  their  shoulders  and  bought  it;  but 
Washington  kept  the  resolution  with  consistent  fidel- 
ity. 

The  storm  gathered  rapidly.  In  December,  1773, 
came  the  Boston  "Tea  Party":    not  content  with  re- 

/>•  it  -iir»-ii  iTi     ^e  Boston 

i using  to  buy  the  tea,  a  band  of  masked  men  boarded  "Tea  Party." 
the  British  ships  in  Boston  harbor,  and  threw  the 


*  Washington,  in  Letter  to  Bryan  Fairfax,  Mt.  Vernon,  July  20,  1774 
Writings,  Vol.  II,  pp.  422-424. 


34 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Call  for  a  union 
of  the  Colonies. 


Washington's 
most  eloquent 
speech. 


The  first 

Continental 

Congress. 


boxes  of  taxed  tea  into  the  water.  This  was  direct 
violation  of  law;  and  early  in  1774  Britain  closed  the 
Port  of  Boston  and  sent  troops  over  to  occupy  the 
City. 

Virginia  joined  with  Massachusetts  in  calling  for 
a  union  of  the  Colonies.  Representatives  from  all 
counties  of  Virginia  met  at  Williamsburg,  August 
1st,  1774,  to  choose  delegates  for  a  Continental  Con- 
gress. It  was  here  that  Washington  made  what  was 
described  as,  "The  most  eloquent  speech  ever  made." 
It  is  so  brief  it  can  be  quoted  entire.  Washington 
stood  up  and  said: 

"I  will  raise  a  thousand  men,  subsist  them  at  my 
own  expense,  and  march  myself  at  their  head  for  the 
relief  of  Boston".* 

That  was  his  "most  eloquent  speech":  a  man  of 
deeds,  rather  than  words;  but  able  to  use  words  truly 
like  bullets,  when  he  wished  to  use  them. 

Washington  was  chosen,  with  Patrick  Henry  and 
others,  a  delegate  to  the  first  Continental  Congress, 
which  began  sitting  in  Philadelphia,  September, 
1774.  It  drew  up  a  Declaration  of  Colonial  Rights, 
its  Addresses  to  the  King  and  People  of  Great  Brit- 
ain; and  the  delegates  returned  home.  Washington 
spent  the  next  months  raising  and  drilling  troops: 
he  knew  that  war  was  coming. 

Early  in  1775,  a  Convention  was  held  at  Rich- 
mond, to  choose  delegates  for  a  second  Continental 


*  Ford,  The  True  George  Washington,  p.  268. 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  35 

Congress.    Washington  was  present  and  heard  Pat- 
rick Henry's  most  flaming  speech.     Again  chosen  a  The  sectmd 
delegate,  he  went  to  Philadelphia,  arriving  in  early  Congress- 
May.     Lexington  had  already  been  fought.     Wash- 
ington's first  act  was  to  call  on  the  already  aged  Ben- 
jamin Franklin.     He  then  went  to  the  Congress; 
and  it  was  John  Adams,  of  Massachusetts,  who  re- 
alizing that  Boston  was  the  storm-center,  and  that 
something  must  be  done  to  win  the  full  support  of 
the   Southern  Colonies,  urged  the  appointment  of 
Washington  as  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  Ameri-  Washington 
can  forces.     Congress  accepted  the  proposal  and  ap-  chosen 

°  x  x       x  x       Commander- in- 

pointed  him.     Washington  was  very  modest  about  Chief.    Attitude 

accepting:  he  wished  a  better  man  had  been  chosen; 
but,  appointed,  he  would  accept,  on  condition  that  he 
receive  no  pay  for  his  services,  but  only  a  reimburse- 
ment of  such  funds  as  he  might  expend  in  the  cause. 
He  hastened  across  the  country  toward  Boston, 
arriving  at  Cambridge,  July  2nd,  1775.  Bunker  Hill 
had  already  been  fought.  When  Washington  learned 
of  the  battle,  he  asked,  "Did  they  fight?";   and  when  Bunker  mil: 

t  i  •  "Did  they  fight?" 

told  that  they  did  fight,  that  those  raw  minute  men 
stood  up  and  drove  the  British  regulars  back,  time 
after  time,  until  exhausted  ammunition  compelled 
retreat,  Washington  breathed  a  sigh  of  relief.  He 
was  sure  now  that,  however  long  and  bloody  the 
struggle  might  be,  the  end  was  to  be  complete  inde- 
pendence. 

So  on  July  3rd,  1775,  traditionally  under  the  Old 
Elm,  on  Cambridge  Common,  Washington  took  com- 


36 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Taking  command. 
Character  of  the 
"Army  of  the 
Revolution." 


Delays  and 
preparations. 


Dorchester 
Heights. 


Evacuation  of 
Boston,  March 
17th,  1770. 


mand  of  the  "Army  of  the  Revolution."  The  phrase 
sounds  big ;  but  think  what  that  army  was :  raw  min- 
ute men,  volunteering  for  one  month,  two  months, 
at  most  three  months.  When  the  month  or  two  was 
up,  they  went  home  to  till  their  farms,  look  after  their 
families,  while  other  men  came  up,  volunteering  for 
the  next  month  or  two.  Imagine  making  an  army  out 
of  stuff  like  that!  They -had  splendid  courage,  but 
no  discipline;  and  then,  they  elected  their  officers. 
Now,  you  can  do  that  in  politics,  with  considerable 
cost,  but  you  cannot  do  it  in  war.  Then,  too,  they 
had  no  powder!  If  the  British  had  not  been  so  dila- 
tory, they  could  have  wiped  out  or  scattered  Wash- 
ington's little  army  before  it  was  sufficiently  equipped 
to  fight. 

Emissaries  were  sent  through  the  Colonies.  What 
powder  there  was,  was  gathered  together;  powder 
mills  were  established.  The  few  guns,  captured  by 
Ethan  Allan,  at  Ticonderoga,  were  hurried  across 
the  country  to  Boston:  it  was  eight  months  before 
Washington  felt  strong  enough  to  make  the  first 
move.  In  March,  1776,  he  was  ready.  On  the  night 
of  the  4th,  he  started  a  cannonade  to  deceive  the 
British;  swiftly  moved  his  troops  up  to  Dorchester 
Heights ;  during  the  dark  hours,  entrenchments  were 
hastily  constructed;  and  the  next  morning  Lord 
Howe  found  Washington's  guns  frowning  over  the 
city  of  Boston.  Futile  efforts  were  made  to  dislodge 
the  Americans.     Lord  Howe  realized  that  he  was 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  37 

trapped ;  and  on  March  17th,  took  ship  with  his  army 
and  sailed  away. 

It  has  always  interested  me  that  the  evacuation  of 
Boston  occurred  on  St.  Patrick's  Day.  Evacuation 
Day  is,  as  you  know,  a  State  Holiday  in  Massachu- 
setts; and  Boston,  as  everyone  is  aware,  has  a  large 
Irish  population.  The  resulting  joint  celebration  of 
Evacuation  Day  and  St.  Patrick's  Day  in  Boston,  is 
something  long  to  be  remembered.  One  really  won- 
ders, sometimes,  whether  certain  of  those  celebrating 
do  not  actually  believe  that  St.  Patrick  drove  the 
British  out  of  Boston,  as  he  drove  the  snakes  out  of 
Ireland ! 

Well,  Lord  Howe  had  sailed  away.  It  was  Wash- 
ington's problem  to  guess  whither;  and  he  guessed 
rightly:  New  York:  that  was  to  be  the  next  point 
of  attack.  So  Washington  hurried  across  the  coun- 
try, his  army  following;  but  Washington  went  on, 
from  New  York  to  Philadelphia,  to  urge  his  views  of 
the  struggle  on  the  Continental  Congress. 

Washington,  our  first  American,  was  already  think- 
ing in  terms  of  a  great,  united  and  independent  Amer-  Washington's  view 
ica.  Understand,  most  men  did  not  think  that  way  its  significance. 
at  the  time.  John  Adams  and  Samuel  Adams:  yes; 
Thomas  Jefferson,  the  young  stripling  Hamilton, 
some  delegates  of  the  Continental  Congress:  yes; 
but  most  men,  even  patriots,  were  thinking,  "We 
will  get  rid  of  these  iniquitous  taxes,  and  quit."  That 
was  particularly  the  attitude  of  the  well  to  do.  You 
know,  Wealth  doesn't  like  war,  anyway,  unless  it  is 


38 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Attitude  of 
wealth  toward 
the  war. 


The  Declaration 
of  Independence. 


The  battle  of 
Long  Island. 


unduly  profiting  by  it :  there  is  too  much  interference 
with  business.  Moreover,  the  idea  of  a  republic  had 
not  yet  come  to  general  consciousness.  There  was 
wide  devotion  to  the  King  and  Crown.  So  the  com- 
mon attitude  was,  we  will  fight  to  get  these  unjust 
taxes  removed  and  our  rights  as  English  freemen  re- 
stored, and  stop.  Not  so  George  Washington:  he 
was  convinced  that  the  struggle  must  be  fought 
through  to  complete  independence.  ^ 

He  and  those  who  thought  with  him  urged  their 
views  on  the  Continental  Congress,  to  final  success; 
and  the  Declaration  of  Independence  was  adopted 
by  the  delegates  and  signed ;  traditionally,  on  the  late 
afternoon  of  July  4th,  1776.  It  was  the  charter  of 
American  liberties,  the  birth  right  of  the  infant  na- 
tion. Five  days  later,  Washington  read  it  to  his 
troops  on  Long  Island,  amid  great  enthusiasm. 

Lord  Howe  had  landed  30,000  troops  on  Long 
Island,  well  trained  and  equipped  to  the  minute. 
Washington  had,  perhaps,  20,000  poorly  trained,  in- 
adequately equipped,  a  fourth  of  them  unfit  for  serv- 
ice. He  had  to  risk  a  battle.  Why?  Because  he 
was  not  only  military  leader,  but  head  of  the  Ameri- 
can cause,  and  was  compelled  to  consider  other  than 
purely  military  factors.  The  battle  was  required  to 
strengthen  the  American  morale,  and  awaken  the 
people  to  the  fact  that  a  war  was  on.  So  Washing- 
ton risked  the  Battle  of  Long  Island,  in  September; 
and  was  completely  defeated;  his  whole  army  being 
left  in  danger  of  destruction. 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  39 

Fortunately,  there  followed  a  night  of  dense  fog. 
Washington  commandeered  every  boat  in  the  bay;  d<Sted° amy. 
and  the  whole  army  was  got  across  the  river,  to  New 
York  and  temporary  safety,  during  the  dark  hours 
of  the  night.  Nine  thousand  men  crossed  in  eight 
hours,  Washington  leaving  Brooklyn  in  the  last  boat 

The  British  moved  up  the  river;  and  began  can- 
nonading about  where  34th  Street  is  now.  The  Amer- 
icans were  driven  to  panic.  Washington  rode  among 
the  fleeing  troops,  rallied  them;  and  Aaron  Burr,  a 
young  officer,  knowing  a  goat  path  over  the  hills,  led 
them  up  to  the  wilderness  of  Haarlem  Heights ;  while 
Lord  Howe  landed  and  went  to  dinner  with  Mrs. 
Murray,  on  Murray  Hill. 

There  followed  the  Battle  of  Haarlem  Heights,  the 
fighting  centering  near  where  Grant's  tomb  stands  Haarlem  Heights. 
today,  when  again  Washington  proved  that  British 
regulars  could  be  defeated. 

Lord  Howe  spent  several  weeks  trying  to  outflank 
Washington ;    but  he  was  dealing  with  too  shrewd  a  white  Plains, 
military  strategist.  Washington  moved  swiftly  across 
to  White  Plains,  where  a  drawn  battle  followed. 

Then  Washington,  with  5,000  men,  crossed  the 
Hudson  to  protect  Philadelphia.  He  had  wished  to 
surrender  Fort  Washington,  but  Congress  forbade  it : 
an  early  instance  of  the  interference  of  politicians 
with  military  affairs,  usually  so  disastrous.  Thus  the 
Fort  was  taken,  and  3000  men  unnecessarily  lost  to 
the  American  cause.  Meanwhile  Lord  Cornwallis 
and  6000  men  scaled  the  Palisades,  captured  the  sup- 


40 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  masterly 
retreat  across 
New  Jersey. 


Washington's 
view  at  the 
darkest  hour. 


Letter  to  a  brother 
in  Virginia. 


Letter  to  Congress 
Dec.  20th,   1776. 

The  soul  of 
Washington. 


plies  at  Fort  Lee,  and  followed  the  trail  of  the  Amer- 
ican army. 

Washington's  retreat  across  New  Jersey  was  a 
strategic  masterpiece.  Again  and  again  he  got  his 
little  army  across  one  and  another  of  the  four  New 
Jersey  rivers  just  in  time,  finally  over  the  Delaware 
to  temporary  safety.  With  his  losses  and  the  expi- 
ration of  enlistments,  his  force  had  dwindled  to  3000 
men.  The  American  cause  seemed  lost;  and  many, 
in  New  York  and  New  Jersey,  even  patriots,  were 
accepting  Lord  Howe's  offer  of  amnesty.  Even  mem- 
bers of  the  Continental  Congress  gave  up  hope.  Not 
so,  George  Washington:  at  this  darkest  hour,  he 
wrote  to  his  brother  in  Virginia: 

"You  can  form  no  idea  of  the  perplexity  of  my 
situation.  No  man,  I  believe,  ever  had  a  greater  choice 
of  difficulties,  and  less  means  to  extricate  himself  from 
them.  However,  under  a  full  persuasion  of  the  justice 
of  our  cause,  I  cannot  entertain  an  Idea,  that  it  will 
finally  sink,  tho'  it  may  remain  for  some  time  under  a 
cloud."* 

Two  days  later  he  wrote  the  Continental  Congress, 
having  almost  exceeded  his  authority,  in  striving  to 
save  the  cause : 

"It  may  be  thought  that  I  am  going  a  good  deal 
out  of  the  line  of  my  duty,  to  adopt  these  measures, 
or  to  advise  thus  freely.    A  character  to  lose,  an  estate 


*  Washington,  in  Letter  to  his  brother,  John  Augustine  Washington. 
Camp,  near  the  Falls  of  Trenton,  Dec.  18,  1776:  Writings,  Vol.  V, 
pp.   Ill,   112. 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  41 

to  forfeit,  the  inestimable  blessing  of  liberty  at  stake, 
and  a  life  devoted,  must  be  my  excuse."* 

Those  words  are  the  soul  of  George  Washington. 

He  saw,  however,  that  something  must  be  done,  or 
the  cause  was  lost;  and  he  planned  what  he  hoped 
would  be  a  decisive  blow,  for  Christmas  Eve.  Since 
Congress  dealt  directly  with  the  generals  under  him, 
he  did  not  have  adequate  authority,  to  court  mar- 
tial, for  instance,  those  disobeying  him.  The  result 
was  that  four  generals  failed  him.  Gates,  who  hated 
him,  anyway,  and  afterwards  conspired  for  his  dis- 
grace and  dismissal,  deliberately  disobeyed  orders, 
and  went  to  see  Congress.  Putnam  remained  in  Phil- 
adelphia. A  third  general  marched  away  from  the 
assigned  field,  instead  of  toward  it;  while  a  fourth* 
remained  in  camp.  Only  General  John  Sullivan 
obeyed  orders  and  advanced  along  the  river  on  the 
Jersey  shore.  Washington,  as  every  school  boy 
knows,  on  Christmas  Eve,  1776,  in  a  storm  of  sleet 
and  rain,  with  the  Delaware  filled  with  blocks  of 
floating  ice,  got  his  own  little  army  across  the  river 
to  the  Jersey  side.  By  four  o'clock,  Christmas  morn-  Delaware the 
ing,  all  his  troops  were  landed.  Sullivan  sent  a  mes- 
sage that  his  men's  arms  were  wet,  and  they  could 
not  fight.  Washington  sent  back  word:  "Tell  your 
general,  then,  to  use  the  bayonet.  Trenton  must  be 
taken." 

Trenton  was  occupied  by  Hessians:    mercenary 

*  Washington,  in  a  letter  to  the  President  of  Congress.     Camp,  above 
Trenton  Falls,  Dec.  20,  1776:     Writings,  Vol.  V,  p.  116. 


42 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  battle  of 
Trenton. 


Cornwallis 

crossing  New- 
Jersey  to  destroy 
Washington's 
small  army. 


Character  of 
Washington  as  a 
military  captain. 


troops,  rented  by  the  Landgrave  of  Hesse-Cassel  and 
other  German  princes,  to  the  British  King.  Mercen- 
aries are  usually  the  most  brutal  of  soldiers.  They 
have  no  interest  in  the  cause,  on  either  side,  but  are 
out  for  money,  plunder,  loot.  The  Hessians  had 
been  particularly  cruel  to  the  inhabitants,  and  were 
bitterly  hated.  Those  in  Trenton  had  celebrated 
Christmas  Eve  in  royal  fashion  and  gone  to  bed, 
mostly  drunk.  Their  commander,  Colonel  Rahl,  it 
is  said,  had  received  a  warning  letter  from  a  New 
Jersey  Tory ;  but,  in  the  celebration,  had  put  it  in  his 
pocket,  to  read  the  next  morning;  and  that  morning, 
at  eight  o'clock,  Washington  struck.  He  completely 
surprised  the  Hessians,  won  a  brilliant  victory,  took 
a  thousand  prisoners  and  eleven  cannon;  and  got  his 
little  army  back  across  the  river  again  to  safety. 

At  this  point,  Lord  Cornwallis  disembarked  7000 
men,  and  started  across  New1  Jersey,  to  wipe  out 
Washington's  miserable  little  army.  Did  you  ever 
hear  words  like  those  ?  Yes,  early  in  the  World  War, 
the  Kaiser,  you  recall,  sent  word  to  his  generals  at 
the  front,  to  "Destroy  General  French's  contempti- 
ble little  British  army."  It  was  the  same  attitude  in 
the  two  instances. 

Washington  waited  at  the  Assanpink  River.  Corn- 
wallis attempted  to  storm  the  bridge;  was  repulsed, 
and  decided  to  wait  until  the  next  morning.  That 
was  all  that  Washington  wanted.  He  has  usually 
been  regarded  as  a  Fabian  in  military  affairs,  always 
fighting  a  retreating  battle.    I  believe  that  is  an  ut- 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  43 

ter  misreading  of  his  character.  He  was  a  Fabian 
only  when  he  could  be  nothing  else ;  but  when  he  had 
a  chance,  when  he  had  half  a  chance,  he  struck  with 
Napoleonic  swiftness  and  audacity.  So,  at  the  As- 
sanpink,  he  left  his  camp  fires  burning  to  deceive  the 
British ;  moved  up  the  river  and  crossed  above ;  came  The  battle  of 

.   /  .  Princeton. 

around  the  British  force  and  struck  at  Princeton. 
Three  regiments  had  been  left  here,  by  Cornwallis, 
as  rear  guard,  with  the  troops  retreating  to  Prince- 
ton after  the  battle  of  Trenton.  Washington  sur- 
prised them;  won  a  complete  victory;  and  the  coun- 
try's cause  was  saved. 

Frederick  the  Great  is  reported  to  have  said  that 
this  New  York-New  Jersey  campaign  of  Washing-   g.    .fi  , 

ton's  was  "the  greatest  campaign  of  the  century."   the  New  York- 

New  Jersey 

Well,  Frederick  the  Great  knew  all  there  was  to  be  campaign,  view 
known  about  military  affairs.  Whether  he  made  the  areat?  enC 
statement  or  not,  the  campaign  was  certainly  a  mas- 
terpiece. It  won,  for  Washington,  five  months  breath- 
ing space,  with  head-quarters  at  Morristown,  New 
Jersey,  to  whip  a  new  army  into  shape.  It  strength- 
ened the  morale  of  the  people.  It  wakened,  finally, 
the  British  to  the  fact  that  a  war  was  really  on.    Hith-  Pe  British  plan 

17       ,  to  split  the 

erto,  they  had  supposed  that  they  were  putting  down  country. 
sporadic  insurrections;    now  they  realized  that  they 
had  a  war  to  fight  through;    and  at  last  adopted  a 
comprehensive  plan. 

Better  than  any  other  modern  people,  the  British 
have  followed  the  old  Roman  maxim,  "Divide  and 
conquer."     That  was  the  plan  now  adopted;    Bur- 


44 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  Burgoyne 
invasion. 


Brandywine 
Creek. 


Taking  of 
Philadelphia. 


goyne  was  sent  down  from  the  North,  along  Lake 
Champlain;  Lord  Howe  was  to  handle  the  southern 
end ;  the  aim  being  to  split  the  country,  on  the  line  of 
the  Hudson,  and  then  conquer,  in  turn,  the  New  Eng- 
land and  the  Southern  Colonies. 

Washington  instantly  saw  the  significance  of  the 
British  strategy;  made  plans  to  resist  the  Burgoyne 
invasion,  which  were  carried  out  by  General  Schuyler. 
At  the  last  moment,  however,  Congress  superseded 
Schuyler  with  Gates,  who  received  the  surrender,  got 
the  glory,  and  lost  his  head,  in  consequence,  as  we 
shall  see. 

Meantime,  Howe  with  100  ships  and  18,000  sol- 
diers, had  sailed  away;  and,  again,  Washington  had 
to  guess  whither.  Once  more  he  guessed  rightly: 
Philadelphia :  that  would  be  the  next  point  of  attack. 
So  he  dropped  down  to  the  Delaware,  marched 
through  Philadelphia,  to  hearten  the  patriots  and  cow 
the  Tories;  and  on  September  11,  1777,  risked  a  bat- 
tle at  Brandywine  Creek.  Howe  had  18,000,  per- 
fectly equipped;  Washington  11,000,  ragged  and 
motley.  He  was  completely  defeated.  He  held  the 
British  twelve  days,  coming  twenty-six  miles;  but 
they  were  too  strong,  and  on  September  26th,  Phil- 
adelphia was  occupied. 

Someone  said  to  Franklin,  in  Paris,  "So  Howe  has 
taken  Philadelphia";  and  Franklin,  in  one  of  those 
happy  and  pregnant  witticisms,  responded,  "O  no, 
Philadelphia  has  taken  Howe"!  That  was  just  it: 
not  only  that  the  British  officers,  enjoying  themselves 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  45 

among  the  Tory  families  of  Philadelphia,  neglected 
the  campaign,  but  that  the  British  plan  of  dividing 
their  forces,  and  occupying  one  town  and  city  after 
another,  left  too  few  men  in  the  field  to  crush  Wash- 
ington's army,  as  they  might  otherwise  have  done. 

On  October  3rd,  Washington  surprised  the  enemy 
at  Germantown :  a  battle  admirably  planned,  but  only  ^mantownf 
partially  successful.  That  he  could  fight  at  all  is 
amazing;  and  the  same  month,  Burgoyne  surren- 
dered his  entire  army  of  5000  men,  in  the  North,  to 
General  Gates.  Congress  ordered  Washington  to 
attack  Howe  in  Philadelphia;  and  Washington  re- 
fused, knowing  that  he  had  not  men  enough  to  do 
it  successfully. 

The  result  of  this  situation  was  that  Gates,  whose 
victory  was  merely  the  conclusion  of  General  Schuy-  Burgoyne's 
ler's  carrying  out  of  Washington's  plans,  seemed  to  Generai^Gatea 
be  the  successful  hero,  while  Washington  apparently 
had  failed.  Gates  was  sure  that  he  was  the  great 
man  of  America.  Even  members  of  the  Continental 
Congress  were  deceived.  The  consequence  was  that 
Gates  conspired  with  an  adventurer,  Conway,  to  get 
Washington  dismissed  and  disgraced,  and  Gates  ap- 
pointed to  the  supreme  command,  with  Conway  as  his 
right  hand  man.  That  "Conway  Cabal",  as  we  call  cabai."°nway 
it,  almost  succeeded!  It  was  only  Washington's  ab- 
solute integrity  and  frank,  straight-forward  dealing 
that  weathered  the  storm;  but  he  did  weather  it. 
Conway  was  dismissed;  and  disappeared  from  the 
scene  of  history.    Gates  survived  until  the  collapse  of 


46 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


at  Valley  Forge. 


his  disgraceful  campaign  in  the  South,  when  he,  too, 
went  the  way  of  dishonorable  schemers. 

These  events  happened,  moreover,  during  the  dark- 
The  bitter  winter  es^  Winter  of  the  war :  that  terrible  Winter  of  ice 
and  snow,  1777-78,  when  Washington  had  headquar- 
ters at  Valley  Forge.  The  soldiers  were  ragged  and 
shoeless,  leaving  blood-stains  on  the  snow,  as  they 
went  from  place  to  place.  Washington  literally  wept 
over  his  men ;  made  frantic  appeals  to  Congress ;  but 
jealousies,  incapacity  and  want  of  money  gave  little 
response.  That  an  army  stayed  together  at  all,  that 
terrible  Winter,  was  due  to  the  personal  devotion  of 
the  men  to  George  Washington,  the  first  American. 

Toward  the  close  of  the  Winter  the  skies  began  to 
brighten.  Washington,  taking  matters  into  his  own 
hands,  appointed  General  Nathanael  Greene  Quarter- 
master General.  Supplies  began  to  come  in.  There 
was  a  wonderful  group  of  officers  with  Washington, 
that  Winter  at  Valley  Forge:  La  Fayette,  twenty 
years  old,  Hamilton,  twenty  one,  Light  Horse  Harry 
Lee,  twenty-two,  Benedict  Arnold,  Wayne,  Knox, 
De  Kalb,  Stirling,  Sullivan.  Baron  Steuben  came 
over  from  Germany,  with  the  last  word  in  military 
training  under  Frederick  the  Great.  He  helped  to 
whip  an  army  into  shape.  A  cavalry  regiment  was 
formed  for  Light  Horse  Harry  Lee.  The  American 
skies  were  brightening. 

The  British  officers,  meantime,  were  spending  the 
Winter  in  a  round  of  social  pleasures,  among  the 
great  Tory  families  of  Philadelphia.    In  the  Spring, 


Officers  at 
Valley  Forge 


The  British  in 
Philadelphia. 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  47 

Lord  Howe  was  recalled,  and  Clinton  sent  to  replace 
him;  and  a  beautiful  Hall  of  Farewell  was  con- 
structed, planned,  if  you  please,  by  Captain  Andre, 
later  the  Major  Andre  of  the  Arnold  treason.  The 
same  night  that  this  celebration  was  held  in  Philadel- 
phia, Washington's  troops  crossed  the  Schuylkill 
and  attacked  the  British  outposts;  and  the  same  fiance  ^  the 
month  news  had  come  that  France  had  definitely  turning  point  of 

J    the  war, 

signed  the  treaty  of  alliance,  recognizing  our  inde- 
pendence and  joining  us  in  the  war  against  Britain. 
It  was  the  turning  point  of  the  war.  Most  Ameri- 
cans, in  fact,  thought  that  France  would  now  do  the 
work  for  us;  but  not  Washington.  He  saw  that,  if 
victory  were  to  be  worth  while,  we  must  win  it  for  our- 
selves; otherwise,  we  should  merely  be  vassals  of 
France,  instead  of  England,  and  in  worse  condition 
than  before. 

The  French  alliance  strengthened  our  morale  and 
gave  us  desperately  needed  money;  beyond  that, 
there  was  little  active  help,  till  near  the  close  of  the 
war.  On  the  other  hand,  the  alliance  brought  new 
difficulties,  which  Washington  met  with  consummate 
wisdom  and  skill. 

Clinton,  in  view  of  the  French  alliance,  decided 
to  evacuate  Philadelphia  and  withdraw  to  New  York; 
and  Washington  thought  he  saw  the  opportunity  for 
the  decisive  blow  he  had  long  been  seeking  to  strike. 
He  planned  it  for  Monmouth  Court  House,  New 
Jersey.  General  Charles  Lee  was  to  execute  a  rear 
attack,  with  Washington  supporting  it.    Charles  Lee 


48 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Defection  of 
General  Charles 
Lee. 


Battle  of 
Monmouth. 


The  year  with 
headquarters 
again  on  the 
Hudson. 


had  earlier  been  an  officer  in  the  British  army;  and 
had  deep  admiration  for  British  regulars,  with  jeal- 
ousy and  distrust  of  Washington.  Whether  from 
fear  or  treachery,  he  deliberately  disobeyed  orders,  or- 
dering a  retreat  and  marching  away  from  the  field, 
instead  of  toward  it.  The  British  fell  upon  his  rear, 
and  drove  his  troops  to  panic  rout.  Washington, 
learning  the  disastrous  news,  spurred  his  horse  for- 
ward; amid  a  hail  of  bullets  rallied  the  panic- 
stricken  troops;  gave  General  Charles  Lee  a  stinging 
reprimand  one  would  have  loved  to  hear:  one  of  the 
rare  cases  where  Washington's  naturally  fierce  tem- 
per exploded,  with  adequate  cause  and  excellent  re- 
sult ;  and  won  a  brilliant  victory  out  of  what  promised 
to  be  utter  defeat.  Lee's  defection,  however,  robbed 
him  of  the  larger  fruits  of  that  victory;  for  Clinton 
got  the  bulk  of  his  army  off  to  New  York  and  safety. 

Washington  moved  up  to  the  Hudson  again. 
There  followed  a  year  of  skirmish  fighting;  the  Brit- 
ish sending  maurauding  parties  into  New  Jersey  and 
Connecticut,  treating  the  inhabitants  with  merciless 
cruelty.  Then  they  moved  up  the  river,  and  took 
Stony  Point  and  Verplanck  Point.  It  looked  as  if 
they  were  again  attempting  to  carry  out  their  old 
plan,  and  split  the  country  on  the  line  of  the  Hudson. 

The  story  is  that  Washington  said  to  Wayne — 
"Mad  Anthony"  Wayne — "Will  you  storm  Stony 
Point";  and  Wayne  responded,  "I'll  storm  Hell,  if 
you  will  plan  it!"  Well,  Washington  planned  it. 
Stony    Point    was    taken;     then   Verplanck    Point. 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  49 

Light  Horse  Harry  Lee  took  Paulus  Hook,  now 
Jersey  City:  the  American  cause  seemed  brighten- 
ing. 

The  nadir  was  reached  with  the  treason  of  Benedict 
Arnold.  Arnold  was  a  leader  of  daring  courage.  ^er^oT  Benedict 
He  had  really  saved  his  country's  cause,  in  one  of  the  Arnold. 
early  crises,  with  his  little  group  of  men,  in  the  North. 
After  the  evacuation  by  Clinton,  Washington  left 
Arnold  in  command  at  Philadelphia.  He  married 
the  daughter  of  a  Tory  family;  was  afterwards  ac- 
cused of  wrong  doing ;  brought  before  a  court  mar- 
tial, sentenced  only  to  a  reprimand;  but  the  sense  of 
injury  rankled  in  his  breast.  He  was,  moreover,  self- 
ishly ambitious,  without  Washington's  beautiful  mod- 
esty. The  American  cause  seemed  doomed,  anyway; 
and  he  decided  to  sell  us  out.  He  induced  Washing- 
ton, who  completely  trusted  him,  to  appoint  him  to 
the  command  of  West  Point;  conspired  to  surrender 
it,  on  condition  of  receiving  a  large  sum  of  money 
and  a  generalship  in  the  British  army;  thus  enabling 
the  British  to  carry  out  their  long  cherished  plan  of 
splitting  the  country  on  the  line  of  the  Hudson.  The  g^nSd068  of 
correspondence  between  Arnold  and  Lord  Clinton  treason- 
was  carried  by  Major  Andre.  All  arrangements  were 
made ;  and  Arnold  was  waiting  for  a  chance  to  com- 
plete the  surrender. 

It  came  in  September,  1780,  when  Washington 
went  to  Hartford,  Conn.  Rochambeau,  the  second 
French  Admiral  to  cross  to  help  us,  had  been  bottled 
up,  by  the  British,  at  Newport.    He  would  not  land 


50 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Washington's   trip 
to  meet  Admiral 
Rochambeau  at 
Hartford,  Conn. 


Major  Andre's 
trip  up  the 
Hudson,  for  a 
final   conference 
with  Arnold. 


his  5000  men;  was  waiting  for  the  reenforcing  fleet, 
which  the  British  prevented  leaving  the  harbour  of 
Brest,  in  France. 

It  was  Hamilton  who  suggested  to  Washington: 
"We  cannot  go  to  see  Rochambeau,  and  he  will  not 
come  to  see  us;  but  can't  we  meet  him  half-way?" 
Washington  liked  the  idea;  arrangements  for  a  con- 
ference at  Hartford  were  made;  and  Washington, 
Hamilton  and  other  aides  started  on  horseback. 

As  soon  as  they  had  gone,  Arnold  sent  word  that 
the  hour  for  consummating  the  treason  had  come. 
Major  Andre  sailed  up  the  Hudson,  in  the  British 
war  ship,  Vulture,  and  dropped  anchor  in  "Mother's 
Lap",  as  the  bay  just  above  Croton  Point  is  still 
quaintly  called.  Leaving  the  ship,  Major  Andre 
crossed  in  a  small  boat  to  the  west  shore,  and  spent 
the  night,  conferring  with  Arnold,  in  the  woods  near 
Stony  Point. 

Just  here  is  a  bit  of  local  history,  contributed  by 
our  local  Westchester  County  authority,  which  bridges 
a  small  gap  in  the  histories,  and  seems  to  be  authentic. 

Our  house  stands  on  a  plateau,  looking  across 
Mother's  Lap  and  Croton  Point,  twenty  miles  down 
the  Hudson.  When  the  Vulture  dropped  anchor, 
two  men,  a  half-breed  Indian  and  a  white  man,  are 
said  to  have  been  making  cider,  about  where  the  house 
stands  today:  the  place  is  still  covered  with  apple 
orchards.  They  dropped  their  cider  works;  hitched 
up  their  team;  drove  to  Peekskill,  eight  miles  up  the 
river,  got  the  only  available  cannon;   took  it  out  and 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  51 

placed  it  in  the  woods,  near  the  end  of  Croton  Point. 
At  dawn  they  fired  one  shot,  and  hit  a  spar  of  the  dropping  Udown 
British  vessel.     Here  the  histories  take  it  up:    the  Mao^And^Tto^ 
captain,  believing  his  ship  menaced  by  a  masked  bat-  return  by  land, 
tery,  weighed  anchor,  and  dropped  down  behind  one 
of  the  great  Hudson  headlands.     Major  Andre,  re- 
turning, could  not  find  his  ship;   went  back,  crossed 
at  Peekskill;   came  down  by  land,  and  was  captured 
behind  Tarrytown.    It  has  always  interested  me  that 
our  home  had  probably  this  romantic  connection  with 
the  frustration  of  the  worst  treason  of  the  war. 

Washington  and  his  aides  reached  the  river  in  the 
early  morning,  returning  from  Hartford.  Washing- 
ton, who  wanted  to  examine  the  West  Point  fortifica- 
tions, said  to  Hamilton:  "You  young  men  go  in  and 
have  breakfast  with  Mrs.  Arnold ;  you  are  all  in  love 
with  her,  anyway!"  During  the  breakfast,  a  messen- 
ger came  with  a  paper  which  he  placed  in  Arnold's 
hands:  the  American  officer,  to  whom  Major  Andre  Frustration  of  the 
had  been  turned  over  by  the  men  arresting  him,  had  the  war. 
stupidly  sent  Andre's  letter  direct  to  Arnold.  Read- 
ing it,  Arnold  turned  ashen  gray,  excused  himself, 
got  in  a  small  boat,  and  was  rowed  away  to  the  Brit- 
ish war  ship  and  shameful  safety.  A  few  moments 
later,  a  second  breathless  messenger  came,  with  the 
treason  papers  found  on  Major  Andre.  These  were 
placed  in  Hamilton's  hands.  It  was  Hamilton  who 
gave  them  to  Washington,  on  his  return  from  the 
fortifications,  Hamilton  to  whom  Washington  made 
his  one  despairing  comment,  "Whom  can  we  trust 


LIBRARY 

UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 
URBANft 


52 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  French 
army  joining 
Washington 
in  July,  1781. 


Hastening   South 
for  the  decisive 
blow. 


Yorktown. 


Washington's 
plans  for 
continuing  the 
struggle. 


now!"  Washington  took  the  needed  measures  for 
the  protection  of  West  Point;  spent  the  night  walk- 
ing to  and  fro  in  the  little  room  in  the  Inn ;  and  the 
worst  treason  of  the  war  was  frustrated. 

A  few  months  later  Washington  had  his  opportu- 
nity for  the  decisive  blow  he  had  long  been  seeking 
to  strike.  Rochambeau  finally  lent  his  five  thousand 
French  soldiers,  who  joined  Washington  at  Dobbs 
Ferry,  early  in  July,  1781.  To  conceal  his  plan  from 
the  British,  Washington  began  operations  as  if  for 
an  attack  on  New  York;  and  then  hastened  South 
with  the  combined  armies.  The  British  had  been 
carrying  on  a  campaign  in  the  Southern  Colonies, 
which  had  gone  against  us,  until  Washington  secured 
the  appointment  of  General  Nathanael  Greene  to  the 
command.  With  La  Fayette's  help,  Greene  had  driven 
the  British  into  Virginia,  where  they  were  entrenched 
at  Yorktown.  Washington,  having  prevailed  upon 
the  French  Admiral  De  Grasse  to  cut  off  the  retreat 
by  sea  of  the  British,  with  the  combined  American 
and  French  armies,  attacked  them,  storming  the  two 
redoubts;  and  on  October  19th,  1781,  Cornwallis  sur- 
rendered his  entire  army  of  seven  thousand  men. 

Some  days  later,  Clinton  arrived  in  the  bay  with 
thirty  five  ships  and  seven  thousand  troops ;  but  find- 
ing what  had  happened,  turned  about  and  sailed  back 
to  New  York. 

Most  Americans  believed  the  war  was  now  over; 
but  not  Washington.  He  urged  preparations  and 
began  planning  for  another  campaign.    Having  made 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  53 

arrangements  to  protect  the  Southern  Colonies  from 
further  British  attack,  he  was  called  to  Eltham  by  the 
death  of  his  step-son,  Jack  Custis,  who  left  a  widow 
and  four  children.  Going  on  to  Philadelphia,  Wash- 
ington urged  upon  Congress  the  needed  measures  for 
continuing  the  conflict. 

The  war  really  was  over,  however.     Britain  was 
tired  of  it,  and  discouraged  at  the  futility  of  six  years  The  cornwallis 

.  J  surrender  as 

of  costly  conflict.  There  had  been  a  growth  of  senti-  really  ending 
ment  recognizing  the  justice  of  the  colonial  cause, 
giving  liberal  statesmen  increasing  influence  in  Eng- 
land's councils.  The  King  was  eventually  compelled 
to  yield ;  and  Britain  finally  acceded  to  the  American 
demand  for  independence. 

It  was  a  year  and  a  half  before  peace  was  pub- 
lished ;  two  years  until  the  definite  treaty  was  signed,  The  dark  period 
and  the  British  evacuated  New  York.     The  interim  between  the  close 

of  fighting  and 

was  a  desperate  time.    Once  the  fighting  had  stopped,   final  peace. 
Congress  found  it  almost  impossible  to  get  any  more 
money,  and  so  proposed  to  disband  the  troops  unpaid. 
The  result  was  a  movement  in  the  army  to  resort  to 
force.    It  was  only  Washington's  personal  influence 
with  his  officers,  in  his  earnest  address  to  them  at 
Newburgh  on  the  Hudson,  that  forestalled  that  mu-  congress  and 
tinous  step.    Washington  was,  meantime,  urging  Con-  the  army* 
gress  to  just  treatment  of  the  army. 

Then  came  an  underground  plan  among  the  of- 
ficers to  make  Washington  king.     Now,  understand,  The  movement  to 
our  people  were  not  yet  committed  clearly  to  a  Re-  £^e  Washin^011 
public.     They  had  fought  for  independence   from 


54 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Why  we  live  in  a 
Republic. 


The  farewell  to 
military  service, 
and  return  to 
Mount  Vernon. 


Britain;  and  were  accustomed  to  the  kingship  idea, 
having  only  just  shaken  themselves  loose  from  their 
absentee  landlord  king,  across  the  water.  Everyone 
saw  the  need  for  some  stronger  authority  than  the 
now  nerveless  and  unsupported  Continental  Con- 
gress. The  army  had  the  power  to  enforce  its  wishes. 
All  Washington  needed  to  do  was  to  do  and  say 
nothing;  and  he  would  have  been  made  King  of 
America,  with  no  danger  of  the  consequences  that 
followed  Napoleon's  similar  assumption  of  imperial 
power  in  France.  When  Washington  learned  of 
the  plan,  however,  he  peremptorily  forbade  it ;  showed 
his  intense  devotion  to  the  principle  of  the  Republic; 
and  today,  that  we  live  in  a  Republic  is  due  to  George 
Washington,  the  first  American! 

In  November,  1783,  the  British  left  New  York. 
Washington  entered ;  and  a  farewell  dinner  was  given 
him  by  his  officers,  at  Fraunce's  Tavern.  It  was  a 
solemn  occasion :  there  were  tears  in  every  eye  as  each 
officer  clasped  the  hand  of  his  beloved  chief  in  si- 
lent farewell.  Washington  started  South;  stopped 
at  Philadelphia  to  adjust  his  accounts  with  the  Con- 
tinental Congress.  He  had  expended  some  seventy- 
five  thousand  dollars  of  his  own  money  in  the  Amer- 
ican cause.  It  would  be  necessary  to  multiply  that 
five  or  ten  times  to  get  its  equivalent  in  current 
wealth.  This  money  was  repaid  Washington;  but 
neither  he  nor  his  heirs  ever  received  one  cent  for  his 
eight  years  of  service  as  Commander-in-Chief  of  the 
American  forces. 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  55 

From  Philadelphia,  he  went  on  to  Annapolis,  where 
the  Continental  Congress  was  then  assembled;  and  on 
December  23rd  was  received  by  the  Congress,  and 
with  a  solemn  and  brief  address,  resigned  his  commis- 
sion. Thence  he  proceeded  to  Mount  Vernon,  arriv- 
ing Christmas  Eve,  1783,  having  not  seen  his  home  for 
eight  years,  except  for  three  days,  on  his  way  to  York- 
town  in  September,  1781. 

With  a  sense  of  glad  release,  Washington  resumed 
his  life  at  Mount  Vernon,  as  a  Virginia  country  gen- 
tleman; but,  of  course,  he  could  not  escape  public 
affairs.  Things  were  going  from  bad  to  worse  with 
the  country,  in  those  difficult  years  between  the  close 
of  the  war  and  the  establishment  of  the  federal  gov-  Washington's 
ernment.     Hamilton  did  the  active  work  leading  to  service  in 

.  CT  moulding  public 

the  forming  of  a  strong  central  government;    but  opinion  in  favor 

Washington  influenced  statesmen  to  a  recognition  of  government. 

the  need  for  it.     He  wrote  letters  to  public  men 

throughout  the  land.     The  burden  of  his  counsel  was 

expressed  in  the  letter  to  the  Governors  of  the  States, 

written  as  the  army  was  about  to  be  disbanded.    Since 

Washington  supposed  he  was  retiring  permanently  The  letter  to  the 

«  i_v     vi»      i  l  i»  . l  •     i  j  j.    Governors  of  the 

from  public  life,  he  spoke  of  this  long,  wise  document  states: 

as  his  legacy.     In  it,  he  characterized  the  situation,  legacy!"0*1  S 

faced  by  the  Country  at  the  close  of  the  Revolution. 

"It  appears  to  me  there  is  an  option  still  left  to  the 
United  States  of  America,  that  it  is  in  their  choice,  and 
depends  upon  their  conduct,  whether  they  will  be  re-        the  close  of  the 
spectable  and  prosperous,  or  contemptible  and  miser-        Revolution, 
able,  as  a  nation.     This  is  the  time  of  their  political 


56 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Washington's  view 
of  the  need  for  a 
strong  central 
government. 


The  burden  of 

Washington's 

counsel. 


Letter  to  John 
Jay  in  1783. 


probation;  this  is  the  moment  when  the  eyes  of  the 
whole  world  are  turned  upon  them ;  this  is  the  moment 
to  establish  or  ruin  their  national  character  for  ever; 
this  is  the  favorable  moment  to  give  such  a  tone  to  our 
federal  government,  as  will  enable  it  to  answer  the  ends 
of  its  institution,  or  this  may  be  the  ill-fated  moment 
for  relaxing  the  powers  of  the  Union,  annihilating  the 
cement  of  the  confederation,  and  exposing  us  to  become 
the  sport  of  European  politics,  which  may  play  one 
State  against  another,  to  prevent  their  growing  impor- 
tance, and  to  serve  their  own  interested  purposes.  For, 
according  to  the  system  of  policy  the  States  shall  adopt 
at  this  moment,  they  will  stand  or  fall ;  and  by  their 
confirmation  or  lapse  it  is  yet  to  be  decided,  whether 
the  revolution  must  ultimately  be  considered  as  a  bless- 
ing or  a  curse ;  a  blessing  or  a  curse,  not  to  the  present 
age  alone,  for  with  our  fate  will  the  destiny  of  unborn 
millions  be  involved."* 

In  the  same  document,  he  urged  as  the  first  condi- 
tion of  the  very  existence  of  the  nation,  "An  indissol- 
uble union  of  the  States  under  one  federal  head."t 

In  a  typical  letter  to  John  Jay,  he  said : 

"I  do  not  conceive  we  can  exist  long  as  a  nation 
without  having  lodged  somewhere  a  power,  which  will 
pervade  the  whole  Union  in  as  energetic  a  manner  as 
the  authority  of  the  State  Governments  extends  over 
the  several  States.   .  .  . 

What  astonishing  changes  a  few  years  are  capable 
of  producing.  I  am  told  that  even  respectable  charac- 
ters speak  of  a  monarchical  form  of  government  with- 

*  Washington,  in  Circular  Letter  to  the  Governors  of  all  the  States, 
on  disbanding  the  Army,  from  Headquarters,  Newburg,  8  June,  1783: 
Writings,  Vol.  X,  pp.  256,  257, 

f  Ibid,  p.  257. 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  57 

out  horror.    From  thinking  proceeds  speaking;   then  to 

acting  is  but  a  single  step.    But  how  irrevocable  and  tre-        Admirable 

•  .  .  psvcholofjy ! 

mendous !     What  a  triumph  for  our  enemies  to  verify 

their  predictions !  What  a  triumph  for  the  advocates 
of  despotism  to  find,  that  we  are  incapable  of  governing 
ourselves,  and  that  systems  founded  on  the  basis  of 
equal  liberty  are  merely  ideal  and  fallacious !  Would 
to  God,  that  wise  measures  may  be  taken  in  time  to  avert 
the  consequences  we  have  but  too  much  reason  to  appre- 
hend." * 

Hamilton  finally  succeeded  in  calling  the  Consti- 
tutional Convention  to  meet  in  Philadelphia,  in  1787.  coLentiontlltional 
Washington  was  chosen  a  delegate  from  Virginia; 
went  reluctantly;  was  chosen  presiding  officer,  and 
spoke  but  once  from  the  floor;  but  his  ideas  deeply 
influenced  the  delegates. 

When,  after  the  long  wrangling,  the  compromise 
Constitution   was  finally    signed,    and    accepted    by  Washington's 

i  i.  .l^.ix*  i     ii  1  ..      unanimous  election 

eleven  states,  the  first  election  was  held  under  it.   as  first  President. 

When  the  votes  of  the  electoral  college  were  counted, 

April  6,  1789,  it  was  discovered  that  every  vote  was 

for  Washington  for  President.     In  Washington's 

time,  there  was  just  one  political  party  in  the  United 

States :  it  was  the  party  of  George  Washington ! 

Washington  was  very  reluctant  to  accept.     His 
view  was:    "I  may  be  something  of  a  military  man,  in 

but  I  am  not  a  statesman;   and  this  is  not  my  job."   accepting,  and 
Letters  came  to  him  from  statesmen  throughout  the  president. 
country,  urging  his  acceptance,  telling  him  he  was 

*  Washington,  in  Letter  to  John  Jay,  Mount  Vernon,  1  August,  1786: 
Writings,  Vol.  XI,  pp.  53-55. 


58 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  great  first 
Cabinet. 


Washington's 
support  of 
Hamilton's 
measures  for 
strengthening  the 
Federal 
Government. 


the  one  man  who  could  make  the  new  government  a 
living  reality.  Washington  yielded;  went  to  New 
York,  then  the  capital;  and  immediately  set  about 
making  the  new  presidential  office  worthy  of  respect. 
He  personally  planned  the  whole  system  of  etiquette 
for  the  treatment  of  the  President.  His  journey  into 
New  England  was  to  impress  the  people  with  the 
fact  that  he  was  President  of  the  whole  nation;  and 
his  little  contretemps  with  John  Hancock,  in  Massa- 
chusetts, showed  how  tenacious  he  was  that  the  Presi- 
dent of  all  the  people  should  be  recognized  as  superior 
to  the  Governor  of  any  fraction  of  the  people. 

His  first  Cabinet  comprised:  Jefferson,  Secretary 
of  State;  Hamilton,  for  the  Treasury;  Knox,  for 
War;  and  Randolph,  Attorney  General:  a  great 
Cabinet.  He  held  the  balance  fairly  between  his  lead- 
ing Secretaries,  Jefferson  and  Hamilton;  but  favored 
increasingly  every  one  of  Hamilton's  vital  measures 
to  make  the  new  government  a  living,  growing  organ- 
ism. What  those  measures  were,  we  shall  study  in 
the  great  career  of  Hamilton,  who  initiated  them  and 
fought  them  through  to  victoiy. 

When  the  first  Congress  assembled,  Washington 
addressed  it  in  person,  both  in  his  Inaugural  and  sub- 
sequently. John  Adams  followed  his  example;  but 
Jefferson,  who  had  a  throat  defect  which  prevented 
his  speaking  in  public,  sent  in  a  written  message. 
Other  Presidents  followed  the  lead  of  Jefferson,  until 
Woodrow  Wilson,  who  knew  our  history  more  inti- 
mately than  any  other  President,  rightly  and  wisely 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  59 

returned  to  the   original  example   of  Washington, 
addressing  Congress  in  person. 

In  his  first  Address  to  Congress,  after  the  Inaug- 
ural, Washington's  initial  demand  was  for  an  ade-  The  Address  at 
quate  military  establishment  for  defense;  his  last  was  *he  assembling  of 

J-  J  Congress,   January 

to  urge  action  to  support  general  knowledge  and  ed-  8th>  1790. 
ucation,  with  the  suggestion  of  a  national  university. 

Recognizing  America's  unique  problem  and  oppor- 
tunity,   Washington   was    strongly    convinced   that, 
while  maintaining  friendly  intercourse  and  commerce  Washington's  view 
with  all  nations,  we  should  scrupulously  avoid  entan-  reiiti^atiX>nal 
glement  in  European  politics,  with  their  vicious  bal- 
ance of  power  alliances.     When  the  difficulty  over 
the  vexing  Genet  affair  arose,  Washington  issued  his 
great  Neutrality  Proclamation,  laying,  for  all  time,  Proclamation. 
the  basis  of  our  foreign  policy. 

Washington  earnestly  wished  to  retire  from  the 
presidency  at  the  conclusion  of  his  first  term ;  but  his 
feeling  that  his  work  was  unfinished,  with  the  uni-  unanimous^ 
versal  demand  that  he  continue,  led  him  to  serve  for  reelectlon- 
a  second  term.  The  unanimous  re-election  naturally 
pleased  him,  and  indicated  the  attitude  of  the  people 
toward  him. 

With   all  the   popular   devotion  to  Washington, 
there  developed,  nevertheless,  increasing  opposition  The  gradual 
to  the  rapidly  growing  power  of  the  federal  govern-  ^partyVf"1 
ment.     This  took  shape  in  a  more  and  more  organ-  °pp<>sltlon- 
ized  party,  with  opposing  political  tenets,  rallying  to 
itself,  also,  those  who  wished  to  continue  a  fast  alliance 
with  France,  and  thus  resented  the  President's  for- 


60 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Virulent  attacks 
upon  Washington. 


Attitude  toward 
political  parties. 


Washington's  view 
of  the  danger  in 
the  Political 
Party  Spirit. 


The  style  in  the 
Farewell  Address 
reminds  that 
Hamilton 
formulated  it; 
and  the  views 
expressed    are   his, 
as  well  as 
Washington's. 


eign  policy.  The  result  was  increasing  attacks  upon 
Federalist  leaders,  including  even  Washington,  and 
finally  focussing  upon  him.  The  malicious  venom  of 
certain  of  these  attacks  would  do  credit  to  the  yel- 
lowest character-assassinating  journalist  of  the  pres- 
ent hour. 

Washington  was  bitterly  hurt  by  these  attacks,  and 
they  wakened  in  him  alarm  for  the  Nation's  future. 
He  dreaded  political  party  spirit  as  a  menace,  of 
which  he  solemnly  warned  the  people  in  his  great 
Farewell  Address: 

"I  have  already  intimated  to  you  the  danger  of  Par- 
ties in  the  State,  with  particular  reference  to  the  found- 
ing of  them  on  Geographical  discriminations.  Let  me 
now  take  a  more  comprehensive  view,  and  warn  you 
in  the  most  solemn  manner  against  the  baneful  effects 
of  the  Spirit  of  Party,  generally. 

This  Spirit,  unfortunately,  is  inseparable  from  our 
nature,  having  its  root  in  the  strongest  passions  of  the 
human  mind.  It  exists  under  different  shapes  in  all 
Governments,  more  or  less  stifled,  controlled,  or  re- 
pressed ;  but,  in  those  of  the  popular  form,  it  is  seen  in 
its  greatest  frankness,  and  is  truly  their  worst  enemy. 


It  serves  always  to  distract  the  Public  Councils,  and 
enfeeble  the  Public  administration.  It  agitates  the 
community  with  ill-founded  jealousies  and  false  alarms, 
kindles  the  animosity  of  one  part  against  another,  fo- 
ments occasionally  riot  and  insurrection.  It  opens  the 
doors  to  foreign  influence  and  corruption,  which  finds 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  61 

a  facilitated  access  to  the  Government  itself  through  the 
channels  of  party  passions."* 

Steadfastly,  Washington  refused  to  be  regarded 
as  leader  of  a  party,  serving  as  President  of  all  the 
people,  with  single-minded  devotion  to  the  welfare  of 
the  Nation  as  a  whole.     The  amazing  fact  of  his  ca-  Washington  a 

-  ,,       realist,  devoid  of 

reer  as  statesman  is  that,  realist  as  he  was,  shrewdly  opportunism,  and 

. i  •  .1  i  ••!       '•  •  consistently 

grasping  things  as  they  are,  he  was  without  a  trace  obedient  to  ideals. 
of  shallow  political  opportunism,  holding  to  princi- 
ples with  inflexible  integrity. 

He  waved  aside  the  urging  for  a  third  term,  per- 
emptorily  refusing   to    consider    it;    thus    founding 

l-l     j.      j«j.«  i»        i      j.         i  £>  t>        'j       ±.      Decisive  refusal  of 

the  tradition  of  only  two  terms  lor  any  one  President:  a  third  term. 
a    tradition    never    subsequently    successfully    chal- 
lenged.   (/4to) 

His  Farewell  Address  to  the  American  People,  on 
finally  leaving  public  life,  was  his  second  and  greater 
"Legacy",  a  legacy  of  thoughtful  wisdom  and  solemn   Washington's 

•       wot  4-u  •  m.    i     j    greater  le-acy to 

warning.    With  the  passage  on  party  spirit,  already  the  Nation. 
quoted,  perhaps  the  gravest  counsel,  in  the  light  of 
the  great  conflict,  which  was  afterwards  to  develop, 
concerned  the  Union.    His  words  are  almost  a  fore- 
cast of  the  Civil  War: 

"The  Unity  of  Government  which  constitutes  you  one 
people,  is  also  now  dear  to  you.     It  is  justly  so;    for        View  of  importance 
it  is  a  main  Pillar  in  the  Edifice  of  your  real  independ-        of  the  Union; 
ence;    the  support  of  your  tranquillity  at  home;    your        preserve  it. 
peace  abroad ;    of  your  safety ;    of  your  prosperity  in 


*  Washington,   in   his   Farewell   Address.-     Writings,   Vol.    XIII,   pp. 
301-304. 


62 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Almost  a  prophesy 
of  the  situation 
Lincoln  faced. 


Late  years  at 
Mount  Vernon. 


The  swarm  of 

guests. 


every  shape ;  of  that  very  Liberty,  which  you  so  highly 
prize.  But  as  it  is  easy  to  foresee,  that,  from  different 
causes,  and  from  different  quarters,  much  pains  will  be 
taken,  many  artifices  employed,  to  weaken  in  your  minds 
the  conviction  of  this  truth ;  as  this  is  the  point  in  your 
political  fortress  against  which  the  batteries  of  internal 
and  external  enemies  will  be  most  constantly  and  ac- 
tively (though  often  covertly  and  insidiously)  directed, 
it  is  of  infinite  moment  that  you  should  properly  esti- 
mate the  immense  value  of  your  national  Union  to  your 
collective  and  individual  happiness ;  that  you  should 
cherish  a  cordial,  habitual,  and  immoveable  attachment 
to  it:  accustoming  yourselves  to  think  and  speak  of  it 
as  of  the  Palladium  of  your  political  safety  and  pros- 
perity; watching  for  its  preservation  with  jealous  anx- 
iety ;  discountenancing  whatever  may  suggest  even  a 
suspicion  that  it  can  in  any  event  be  abandoned,  and  in- 
dignantly frowning  upon  the  first  dawning  of  every  at- 
tempt to  alienate  any  portion  of  our  Country  from  the 
rest,  or  to  enfeeble  the  sacred  ties  which  now  link  to- 
gether the  various  parts."* 

Retiring  again  to  the  life  of  a  country  gentleman, 
at  Mount  Vernon,  Washington  was  now  the  foremost 
man  in  America,  indeed  in  the  world.  In  conse- 
quence, his  home  was  thronged  with  guests  from  all 
over  the  land  and  Europe,  as  well.  He  himself  de- 
scribed the  house  as  rather  like  a  public  inn,  than  a 
private  dwelling.  This  condition,  indeed,  had  devel- 
oped increasingly  from  the  close  of  the  Revolution. 
Writing  his  Mother,  in  the  winter  before  the  Consti- 


287. 


Washington,  in  Farewell  Address;    Writings,  Vol.  XIII,  pp.   286, 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON 


63 


tutional  Convention,  a  letter  that  also  throws  interest- 
ing light  on  his  relation  to  her,  Washington  said : 
"My  house  is  at  your  service,  and  I  would  press  you 
most  sincerely  and  devoutly  to  accept  it,  but  I  am  sure, 
and  candor  requires  me  to  say,  it  will  never  answer  your 
purposes  in  any  shape  whatever.  For  in  truth  it  may  be 
compared  to  a  well  resorted  tavern,  as  scarcely  any 
strangers  who  are  going  from  north  to  south,  or  from 
south  to  north,  do  not  spend  a  day  or  two  at  it.  This 
would,  were  you  to  be  an  inhabitant  of  it,  oblige  you  to 
do  one  of  3  things :  1st,  to  be  always  dressing  to  appear 
in  company ;  2nd,  to  come  into  the  room  in  a  dishabille, 
or  3rd,  to  be  as  it  were  a  prisoner  in  your  own  chamber. 
The  first  you'ld  not  like;  indeed,  for  a  person  at  your 
time  of  life  it  would  be  too  fatiguing.  The  2nd,  I 
should  not  like,  because  those  who  resort  here  are,  as  I 
observed  before,  strangers  and  people  of  the  first  dis- 
tinction. And  the  3rd,  more  than  probably,  would  not 
be  pleasing  to  either  of  us."* 

The  increasing  throng  of  visitors  was  generously 
welcomed,  and  entertained,  as  of  old,  with  stately  hos- 
pitality. 

He  was  once  more  to  be  called  from  his  retirement, 
however.  When  the  threat  of  war  with  France  came, 
over  the  XYZ  Letters,  President  Adams  appointed 
Washington  Commander-in-Chief  to  raise  an  army; 
but  the  war  scare  blew  over,  and  Washington  re- 
turned home. 

In  December,  1799,  he  had  just  finished  his  plans 
for  the  completion  of  Mount  Vernon;   and  went  out 


Letter  describing 
Washington's 
household  and 
showing  his 
relation  to  his 
Mother. 


The  brief  late 
period  of  service 
as  Commander- 
in-Chief. 


*  Washington  in  a  letter  to  his  Mother,  Mt.  Vernon,  Feb.  15,   1787: 
Writings,  Vol.  XI,  pp.  116,  117. 


64 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Circumstances 
of  Washington's 
last  illness  and 
death. 


Summary  of  the 
character  of 
Washington. 


to  ride  over  his  estate,  as  was  his  daily  custom.  A  cold 
winter  rain  came  on,  and  he  returned  chilled  and  wet 
to  the  skin ;  went  to  bed  ill,  and  grew  rapidly  worse. 
He  seems  to  have  suffered  from  a  particularly  ma- 
lignant form  of  laryngitis,  which  produces  death  by 
suffocation,  as  malignant  croup  sometimes  does  with 
children.  We  relieve  that  disease  today  by  tempo- 
rarily opening  the  wind-pipe;  but  probably  not  more 
than  two  or  three  physicians,  in  America,  knew  that 
difficult  operation,  at  the  time.  The  Doctors  came; 
they  bled  him,  taking  away  more  than  a  quart  of  the 
precious  blood  he  needed  to  fight  the  disease:  they 
meant  well;  and  so  on  December  14th,  1799,  at  the 
age  of  67,  Washington  died,  probably  in  much  agony, 
practically  strangled  to  death. 

A  great  man,  of  many-sided  activity,  Washington 
evidenced  the  same  balance,  strong  native  intelligence 
and  straight-forward  achievement  in  every  field. 
With  utter  integrity  of  character  and  unerring  judg- 
ment of  men,  Washington's  grasp  of  realities  was 
equalled  by  his  consistent  devotion  to  ideas.  A  hearty 
eater  and  regular,  temperate  drinker,  all  his  life,  of 
impressive  stature,  phenomenal  strength  and  endur- 
ing vigor,  always  with  an  eye  for  a  handsome  woman, 
loving  the  out-door  sports  of  hunting,  fishing  and 
riding,  Washington  had  all  the  natural  passions 
strong  in  him,  but  well  controlled.  No  lay  figure, 
bronze  or  marble  statue  or  graven  image,  but  a  vig- 
orous, life-loving  human  being,  Washington  had, 
from  the  beginning,  the  vision  of  a  great,  united  and 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON  65 

independent  America;  and  served  that  vision  with 
unfaltering  fidelity  and  selfless  devotion  to  the  day  of  ^f^o^ 
his  death.  Our  first  American,  he  well  deserved  the  fir8t  American. 
eulogy  of  Light  Horse  Harry  Lee,  his  beloved  young 
comrade  of  the  Revolution,  who,  invited  by  Congress 
to  give  the  Memorial  Address,  spoke  in  it  those  me- 
morable words,  oft  quoted,  but  which  still  define  our 
conception  of  Washington,  as  indeed,  "First  in  War, 
first  in  Peace,  and  first  in  the  hearts  of  his  country- 
men," 


II 

FRANKLIN:     THE  PRACTICAL 
AMERICAN 


Franklin's  part  in 
making  victory- 
possible  in  the 
Revolution. 


Friendship  of 
Washington  and 
Franklin. 


Franklin's  bequest 
to  Washington. 


The  long  period 
of   history   covered 
by  Franklin's  life. 


WASHINGTON  led  the  country  victoriously 
through  the  many  trials  of  the  Revolution, 
and  inaugurated  the  Nation,  serving  his  two 
terms  as  first  President.  Next  to  Washington,  it 
was  Benjamin  Franklin  who  made  success  possible 
in  the  War  for  Independence,  by  winning  and  hold- 
ing the  sympathy  and  help  of  France.  Entirely  self- 
educated  and  self-made,  the  most  many-sided  in 
activity  of  all  our  great  men,  Franklin  stands  as  the 
type  of  the  practical  American,  for  our  whole  history. 
The  life-long  friendship  of  Washington  and 
Franklin  is  charmingly  revealed  in  a  paragraph  of 
Franklin's  Last  Will.     It  reads: 

"My  fine  crab-tree  walking-stick,  with  a  gold  head 
curiously  wrought  in  the  form  of  the  Cap  of  Liberty, 
1  give  to  my  friend,  and  the  friend  of  mankind,  Gen- 
eral Washington.  If  it  were  a  sceptre,  he  has  merited 
it,  and  would  become  it."* 

Since  Franklin  was  twenty-six  years  older  than 
Washington,  his  life  goes  back  much  further  into 
the  Colonial  period;  but  living  to  the  age  of  eighty- 


Franklin,  in  his  Last  Will:    Complete  Works,  Vol.  X,  pp.  226,  227 

66 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  67 

four,  and  dying  only  nine  years  before  Washington, 
his  career  covered  the  whole  period  of  the  Revolution, 
into  the  time  of  Washington's  first  administration. 
The  contrast  in  background  of  life  and  early  en- 
vironment, between  the  two  great  leaders,  is  impress- 
ive:   Washington,   the   Virginia   aristocrat,   early   a   Contrasting 

°  ,  i      i  i  inheritance  of 

large  landed  proprietor  and  slave  owner;  Franklin,  Washington  and 
reared  in  humblest  circumstances,  descended,  as  the 
name  indicates,  from  sturdy  English  freeholders,  who 
had  occupied  the  same  thirty  acres  of  land,  in  Eng- 
land, for  three  hundred  consecutive  years,  the  eldest  Ancestry  0f 
son,  for  many  generations,  traditionally  becoming  a  Franklin. 
blacksmith. 

Franklin's  father,  Josiah,  came  over  from  Eng- 
land about  1685,  with  his  wife  and  three  children, 
settling  in  Boston.  Four  more  children  were  born, 
during  the  next  four  years;  and  then  the  wife  died. 
Six  months  later,  Josiah  Franklin  married  again. 
His  second  wife  was  Abiah  Folger,  daughter,  Frank- 
lin says,  of  one  of  the  first  settlers  in  New  England, 
a  surveyor,  who  wrote  verses,  loved  books,  and  was  famTiy. Franklm'1 
a  liberal  in  thought.  By  his  second  marriage,  Josiah 
Franklin  had  ten  more  children,  making  seventeen 
in  all.  The  colonies  were  in  great  need  of  popula- 
tion, in  those  days,  and  Josiah  Franklin  seems  to 
have  been  a  thoroughly  patriotic  citizen.  Franklin 
was  the  fifteenth  child  and  tenth  son  of  his  father, 
born  in  Milk  Street,  Boston,  just  opposite  the  Old 
South  Church,  January  17th,  1706.  He  outlived 
all  his  family,  except  one  sister,  and  was  the  only 


68 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


one  of  his  tribe  to  attain  distinction,  achieved  through 
his  own  unaided  efforts.  Franklin,  throughout  his 
life  and  in  his  bequests  was  most  generous  in  assist- 
ing financially  his  numerous  relatives,  especially  the 
surviving  sister. 

The  father  had  developed  a  small  soap  and  candle 
making  business  in  Boston.    He  conversed  well,  sang, 
and  played  the  violin,  for  his  own  pleasure  and,  we 
trust,  that  of  his  family.     With  the  large  brood  of 
children,  the  household,  if  humble,  must  have  been  a 
Meager  schooling,    happy  one.    Franklin's  schooling  was  most  meager: 
a  scant  two  years ;  and  then,  at  ten,  he  had  to  go  to 
work  in  his  father's  shop,  to  help  out  the  family. 
He  was,  however,  a  natural  student,  from  the  be- 
ginning.    He  says  he  could  not  remember  when  he 
learned  to  read,  it  was  earlier  than  his  earliest  recol- 
lection.   By  the  age  of  twelve,  he  was  reading  every 
book  he  could  get  his  hands  upon.     His  first  book 
Franklin  a  born      was  Pity™171'8  Progress  :    interesting,  how  many  of 
student.  His  early  our  great  men  started  with  that.    It  so  impressed  him 

reading.  . 

that  he  saved  his  pennies  and  bought  all  of  Bunyon's 
writings.  Having  absorbed  these,  he  traded  them  for 
Burton's  Historical  Collections,  a  more  pretentious 
work.  From  his  father's  few  books,  he  had  Plutarch's 
Lives,  De  Foe's  Essay  Upon  Projects  and  Cotton 
Mather's  Essays  to  Do  Good.  This  last,  he  says, 
deeply  influenced  his  character. 

For  a  half  century  of  Franklin's  long  life  we  have 
a  fascinating  record  in  his  Autobiography.  The 
larger   part   was   written   during  his  third   stay   in 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 


69 


England,  at  the  age  of  sixty-five;   it  was  continued 
during  his  residence  in  France,  at  seventy-eight;  and 
the  concluding  pages   were  written   at   eighty-two, 
after  his  return  to  Philadelphia.    It  is  thus  a  typical 
autobiography,  written  late  and  telling  the  major  life- 
story.     It  is,  further,  one  of  the  really  great  auto- 
biographies, in  which  the  style  is  the  man.     To  give 
the  color  of  that  style,  let  me  quote  a  portion  of  the 
opening  passage.    It  is  addressed  to  his  son,  William : 
"Dear  Son:     I  have  ever  had  pleasure  in  obtaining 
any  little  anecdotes  of  my  ancestors   .    .    .   Imagining 
it  may  be  equally  agreeable  to  you  to  know  the  circum- 
stances of  my  life,  many  of  which  you  are  yet  unac- 
quainted with,  and  expecting  the  enjoyment  of  a  week's 
uninterrupted  leisure  in  my  present  country  retirement, 
I  sit  down  to  write  them  for  you.     To  which  I  have 
besides  some  other  inducements.     Having  emerged  from 
the  poverty  and  obscurity  in  which  I  was  born  and  bred, 
to  a  state  of  affluence  and  some  degree  of  reputation 
in  the  world,  and  having  gone  so  far  through  life  with  a 
considerable   share   of  felicity,   the   conducing  means  I 
made  use  of,  which  with  the  blessing  of  God  so  well  suc- 
ceeded, my  posterity  may  like  to  know,  as  they  may  find 
some  of  them  suitable  to  their  own  situations,  and  there- 
fore fit  to  be  imitated. 

That  felicity,  when  I  reflected  on  it,  has  induced  me 
sometimes  to  say,  that  were  it  offered  to  my  choice,  I 
should  have  no  objection  to  a  repetition  of  the  same  life 
from  its  beginning,  only  asking  the  advantages  authors 
have  in  a  second  edition  to  correct  some  faults  of  the 
first.  So  I  might,  besides  correcting  the  faults,  change 
some  sinister  accidents  and  events  of  it  for  others  more 
favorable.     But  though  this  were  denied,  I  should  still 


His  Autobiography 
as  the  great  text 
for  Franklin's  life. 


Opening 
passage  of  the 
Autobiography. 


-■ 


70 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Franklin's  vital 
style  as  character- 
istic of  the  man. 


Buoyant, 

optimistic 

temperament. 


Franklin's 
abundant  humor, 
an  important 
element  in  his  life 
equipment. 


Significance  of 
Franklin's  vanity. 


accept  the  offer.  Since  such  a  repetition  is  not  to  be 
expected,  the  next  thing  like  living  one's  life  over  again 
seems  to  be  a  recollection  of  that  life,  and  to  make  that 
recollection  as  durable  as  possible  by  putting  it  down 
in  writing. 

Hereby,  too,  I  shall  indulge  the  inclination  so  natural  in 
old  men,  to  be  talking  of  themselves  and  their  own  past 
actions."* 

Note  the  virile  style,  with  full,  balanced  sentences: 
contrasting  with  the  poor  little  choppy  sentences,  and 
phrases  used  as  sentences,  in  much  of  our  current 
writing;  the  apparent  aim  of  which  is  to  enable  the 
tired  business  man  to  read  without  thinking.  Frank- 
lin's vigorous  writing  challenges  thought  and  stimu- 
lates reflection. 

One  is  also  impressed  with  the  warm,  optimistic 
love  of  life.  He  would  gladly  live  his  life  over  again: 
O,  eliminating  some  painful  chapters,  if  permitted; 
but  even  without  that  privilege,  he  would  live  it  again. 

With  this  quality  is  the  abundant  sense  of  humor, 
the  saving  grace  in  Franklin's  character:  without  it, 
he  might  easily  have  become  a  moral  prig  or  a  relig- 
ious fanatic.  Humor,  which  is  the  other  side  of  ethical 
good  taste,  gave  Franklin  his  sanity  and  balance,  his 
instinctive  sense  of  things  in  right  relation. 

In  the  passage  quoted,  note  further  the  element  of 
personal  vanity.  Yes,  Franklin  had  that  character- 
istic;   and  doubtless  it  helped  him  over  many  hard 


*  Franklin,  opening  passage  of  his  Autobiography,  written  at  sixty- 
five,  while  in  England:     Complete  Works,  Vol.  I,  pp.  29,  30. 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 


71 


That  does    his  brother,  as 
printer. 


places  in  the  road;  but  he  never  allowed  it  to  inter- 
fere with  his  devoted  service  of  his  country's  cause. 
Franklin  did  not  like  the  soap  and  candle  business. 
Early  developing  skill  and  liking  for  swimming  and 
boating,  Franklin  wanted  to  go  to  sea ;  but  his  father 
forbade  that.  Recognizing  his  bookish  tastes,  the  fa- 
ther wished  to  make  him  a  minister  of  religion;  but 
there  was  not  money  enough  for  the  requisite  educa- 
tion. So,  as  the  nearest  approach  to  a  bookish  career,  Apprenticed  to 
the  father  decided  on  the  printer's  trade 
not  seem  to  be  a  very  close  approximation  to  a  liter- 
ary life ;  but  it  was  the  best  the  father  could  do.  Thus, 
at  twelve,  Franklin  was  apprenticed  to  his  brother, 
James,  who  was  ten  years  older,  and  who  had  returned 
from  England  the  year  before,  with  a  press  and  types, 
and  set  up  a  printing  business  in  Boston.  The  brother 
was  to  feed,  clothe  and  house  him;  Franklin's  labor 
was  to  be  his  brother's  till  twenty-one,  though  he  was 
to  receive  journeyman's  wages  the  last  year.  Rather 
hard  conditions,  one  would  think,  for  a  boy's  start  in  apprenticeship 
life !  One  wonders  sometimes  what  boys  of  these  days 
would  do  were  they  compelled  to  submit  to  such  con- 
ditions. We  have  lately  been  considering  passing  an 
amendment  to  the  Constitution,  giving  an  absentee 
body,  that  recently  has  rather  discredited  itself,  the 
national  Congress,  the  right  to  prohibit  all  labor  of 
young  people  under  eighteen :  rather  a  dangerous  au- 
thority to  concede  to  such  a  body !  Certainly,  if  young 
persons  do  not  learn  to  work  hard  before  they  are 
eighteen,  they  will  never  learn  in  this  life ;  and  strong, 


Conditions  of  the 


72 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Struggles  for 
education. 


Admirable  use  of 
the  Spectator 
Papers  in 
acquiring  an 
English  style. 


efficient  character  undoubtedly  developed  under  the 
hard  conditions  of  those  earlier  days. 

Franklin  now  had  wider  access  to  books.  He  made 
the  acquaintance  of  a  book-stall  keeper,  and  got  the 
privilege  of  borrowing  a  book  just  as  the  shop  closed 
at  night,  on  condition  of  returning  it  exactly  at  the 
opening  hour  in  the  morning.  Thus  he  frequently 
read  most  of  the  night  to  finish  a  book  in  time  for  its 
required  return.  At  this  time,  he  still  felt  that  he 
ought  to  go  to  church,  and  his  father  was  insistent  that 
he  should;  but  Franklin  says  he  really  did  not  have 
time ;  for  Sundays,  the  noon  hours  and  evenings  were 
his  only  times  to  read. 

He  came  upon  a  volume  of  the  Spectator  Papers, 
the  third,  and  at  that  early  age  was  already  able  to 
recognize  its  worth  in  thought  and  excellence  of  style. 
Franklin  saw  in  this  book  an  opportunity  to  improve 
his  own  use  of  English.  So  he  would  take  one  of  the 
Spectator  Papers;  jot  down  hints  of  what  it  contained; 
wait  until  he  had  forgotten  the  original,  and  then 
write  out  an  essay  of  his  own  from  his  notes.  This 
he  compared  with  the  original,  correcting  the  faults 
he  discovered.  He  found  his  vocabulary  meager,  and 
thought  he  might  have  had  a  wider  use  of  words  had 
he  continued  his  early  begun  habit  of  writing  verses. 
Therefore  he  turned  some  of  the  essays  into  verse; 
and,  after  a  time,  converted  them  into  prose  again, 
and  then  made  a  fresh  comparison  with  the  original. 
Naturally,  he  discovered  many  faults;  but  occasion- 
ally, he  modestly  says,  he  thought  he  had  improved 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  73 

somewhat  upon  the  original ;  and  this  encouraged  him 
to  hope  that  he  "might  possibly  in  time  come  to  be  a 
tolerable  English  writer,"  of  which  he  was  "extremely 
ambitious."  He  fully  achieved  his  hope,  as  we  see. 
The  whole  passage,  in  the  Autobiography,  is  recom- 
mended to  any  young  student  who  wishes  to  improve 
his  mastery  of  English. 

At  sixteen,  Franklin  was  converted  to  Vegetarian- 
ism, chiefly  on  moral  grounds,  through  a  book  that  Vegetarianism 
he  read.     Discovering  that  a  frugal  vegetarian  diet   Franklins  devotion 
was    quiet    inexpensive,    Franklin    proposed    to    his    °  8  u  7' 
brother  to  give  him  one  half  of  the  money  his  food 
cost ;  and  he  would  board  himself.    The  brother,  glad 
to  save  half  the  expense,  of  course  accepted.    Frank- 
lin took  the  one  half,  and  boarded  himself  on  one  half 
of  that  amount,  using  the  remaining  quarter  of  the 
food  expense  to  buy  books.    Surely,  this  is  a  supreme 
illustration  of  his  devotion  to  study! 

He    now   mastered    Arithmetic    and    Navigation, 
Locke's  great  treatise  on  the  Human  Understanding,  development  of 
the  Art  of  Thinking  by  the  Port  Royal  authors,  Xen-  *n  Eighteenth 

i  o      J  J  >  Century  mind. 

ophon's  Memorabilia  of  Socrates,  Shaftsbury  and 
Collins.  He  had  now  become  a  religious  skeptic: 
going  through,  as  you  see,  the  typical  development 
of  an  active  Eighteenth  Century  mind.  It  was  a 
rather  dry  emancipation,  with  nothing  of  that  spirit- 
ual warmth  of  mysticism  that  marked  the  parallel 
clarification  of  the  Nineteenth  Century,  as  led  by 
Emerson  in  America  and  Carlyle  in  England ;  but  it 
was  a  vital  intellectual  emancipation,  none  the  less. 


74 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  New  England 
Courant. 


Early  journalistic 

efforts. 


Circumstances 
of  Franklin's 
escape  from  his. 
apprenticeship : 
"the  first  great 
erratum." 


Meantime,  his  brother  had  started  a  newspaper, 
the  New  England  Courant,  the  fourth  to  be  published 
in  America.  Franklin,  who  had  the  journalistic  in- 
stinct, was  deeply  interested  in  this  venture.  Believ- 
ing that  he  could  write  as  good  an  article  as  some  of 
those  appearing  in  the  paper,  Franklin  tried  his  hand, 
and  slipped  an  unsigned  one  under  the  door  of  the 
printing  office  by  night.  It  was  found  the  next  morn- 
ing, printed,  and  approved  warmly  by  certain  intel- 
lectual gentlemen.  Franklin  repeated  the  experi- 
ment several  times;  and  finding  his  anonymous  arti- 
cles all  acceptable,  modestly  acknowledged  author- 
ship. The  brother  was  furious:  jealous  of  the  su- 
perior intellectual  ability  of  the  ten  years  younger 
lad.  The  result  was  various  beatings,  and  Franklin's 
appeal  to  his  father;  who  sided  with  him,  but  with- 
out relieving  the  situation,  to  any  extent. 

An  article,  criticising  the  authorities,  caused  the 
brother  to  be  thrown  into  jail:  there  was  little  free 
speech,  in  the  Colonies,  in  those  days.  During  the 
period  of  his  brother's  confinement,  Franklin  had  to 
edit  the  newspaper.  He  continued  "to  give  rubs  to 
the  authorities",  but  so  skillfully  that  he  escaped  his 
brother's  fate.  At  the  end  of  a  month,  the  brother 
was  released,  on  condition  that  he  cease  publishing 
his  newspaper.  Well,  he  did  not  wish  to  give  it  up, 
as  it  was  one  of  his  best  assets ;  so  he  adopted  the  de- 
vice of  issuing  it  under  his  brother  Benjamin's  name. 
To  do  this,  he  had  to  free  Franklin  publicly  from  his 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  75 

indenture  papers;  but  he  compelled  the  signing  se- 
cretly of  fresh  papers. 

Franklin  saw  his  opportunity.  He  knew  his 
brother  would  not  dare  tell,  since  he  was  striving,  by 
a  trick,  to  get  around  the  order  of  the  authorities. 
So  Franklin  simply  took  French  leave:  left  his 
brother's  establishment.  He  says  this  was  "one  of 
the  first  great  errata"  of  his  life.  There  were  many 
others,  as  we  shall  see. 

The  brother  prevented  Franklin's  getting  another  The  flight  to 
printing  job  in  Boston;  so  he  sold  some  of  his  books     ew  York* 
for  funds,  secretly  took  ship,  and  sailed  away  to  New 
York. 

During  the  voyage  there  was  a  big  haul  of  codfish. 
Now  Franklin,  being  a  Bostonian,  greatly  liked  cod- 
fish; but  there  was  the  obstacle  of  his  vegetarian 
principles!  When  the  larger  fish  were  opened,  how- 
ever, he  discovered  that  each  had  smaller  fish  in  its 
belly.     So  he  argued  that,  if  the  lamer  fish  ate  the  The  saving  humor 

t.     i  •  ?-.  i  »       -i  .  of  Franklin. 

little  ones,  it  could  not  be  so  wrong  for  him  to  eat  the 
larger  ones,  and  dined  heartily  and  joyously.  The 
incident  shows  well  the  saving  humor  in  Franklin's 
character:  without  it  he  might  indeed  easily  have  be- 
come a  moral  prig  or  a  religious  fanatic.  Some  of 
us  could  narrate  chapters  of  our  own  youthful  experi- 
ence, similar  to  this  of  Franklin's,  where  we,  too,  were 
saved  from  attacks  of  moral  measles  by  an  abundant 
sense  of  humor. 

Arriving  in  New  York,  Franklin  was  kindly 
treated;  but  there  was  no  job  for  him  there,  and  he 


76 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


the  journey  and 
arrival. 


was  advised  to  go  on  to  Philadelphia.  It  was  a  con- 
crr^m^esPofa'  siderable  journey,  from  New  York  to  Philadelphia, 
in  those  days.  Franklin  went  by  boat  to  Amboy,  New 
Jersey;  thence  on  foot  to  Burlington,  being  drenched 
with  rain  on  the  way.  Some  kindly  persons  took  him 
in  over  night.  The  next  morning  he  was  taken  into 
a  rowboat,  landed  at  the  foot  of  Market  Street,  in 
Philadelphia. 

His  chest  had  gone  around  by  sea;  his  pockets  were 
stuffed  with  dirty  clothes,  and  he  was  bedraggled 
from  the  trip.  With  one  Dutch  dollar  left  in  his 
pocket,  he  started  up  Market  Street,  dropped  into  a 
bake  shop  and  bought  three  rolls.  Rolls  turned  out 
to  be  long  loaves  in  Philadelphia.  Having  purchased 
them,  Franklin  did  not  wish  to  lose  his  money;  so 
with  one  roll  under  each  arm,  and  vigorously  munch- 
ing the  third,  held  in  both  hands,  he  wandered  on  up 
Market  Street,  passing  the  home  of  the  Read  family, 
with  Deborah,  the  daughter,  standing  at  the  door, 
convulsed  with  laughter  at  the  comical  appearance 
Franklin  made,  little  dreaming  she  was  to  marry  him 
later  on.  Tired  with  the  long  trip,  Franklin  dropped 
into  a  Quaker  Meeting  House;  and  went  soundly  to 
sleep.  He  seems  to  imply  that  it  was  a  very  good 
place  to  sleep ! 

The  important  point  about  Franklin  is  that  he  al- 
ways lights  on  his  feet.  No  matter  what  exigencies 
came,  he  met  them,  in  every  instance,  with  the  shrewd- 
ness and  self  confidence  of  the  practical  American. 
He  quickly  found  work  in  the  printing  office  of  one 


Deborah  Read's 
first  view  of 
Franklin. 


The  practical 
American. 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  77 

Keimer,  a  religious  fanatic.  He  early  found  lodging 
with  the  Read  family;  and  while  he  had  little  spare  printing 
time,  he  used  what  was  available  in  the  pleasant  rec-  establisnment- 
reation  of  courting  the  buxom  daughter.  His  indus- 
try and  thrift  attracted  the  favorable  notice  of  cer- 
tain influential  men,  in  particular  the  Governor  of  the 
Colony,  Sir  William  Keith.  He  said  that  Franklin 
was  too  fine  a  young  man  to  be  working  for  someone 
else;  that  he  should  go  to  Boston  and  get  his  father 
to  put  up  the  money,  and  start  an  independent  print- 
ing office.  The  Governor  would  give  him  the  govern- 
ment printing  and  see  that  all  went  well. 

Franklin  joyfully  took  the   advice;    and  with  a 
strong  letter  from  the  Governor  to  his  father,  sailed   The  visit  to 

i        -r»  •   •  iiii  Boston. 

around  to  Boston,  surprising  his  family,  who  had  been 
in  entire  ignorance  of  his  whereabouts  during  the  in- 
tervening seven  months.  They  greeted  him  with  open 
arms,  all  except  the  brother,  whose  establishment 
Franklin  had  abandoned.  That  brother  never  for- 
gave him.  When,  however,  Franklin  made  his  pro- 
posal to  his  father,  the  latter  threw  up  his  hands: 
what,  give  a  seventeen  year  old  boy  money  to  start  in 
business  independently?  No,  indeed,  besides,  he  had 
no  such  money!  So  Franklin  cheerfully  said  good- 
bye, and  took  ship  back  for  Philadelphia. 

Here,  Franklin  resumed  his  work  in  Keimer 's  shop ; 
but  the  Governor,  on  learning  that  the  father  had  The  Governor's 
refused  to  furnish  the  money,  offered  to  advance  it,  PleasantIT- 
urging  Franklin  not  to  give  up  the  plan,  but  to  make 
his  preparations  to  go  to  England  for  press  and  type. 


78  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

Franklin  arranged  for  passage,  for  himself  and  his 
friend,  Ralph;  but  no  money  was  forthcoming. 
Broaching  the  matter  to  the  Governor,  Franklin  was 
assured  all  would  be  right,  to  take  ship  and  there 
would  be  letters  arranging  everything.  Franklin  and 
Ralph  got  aboard,  with  some  anxiety ;  well  out  to  sea, 

Raipl° togEngiand.  tne  ma^  ^ag  was  opened,  and  there  was  nothing  for 
Franklin!  The  Governor  seems  to  have  been  a  typ- 
ical politician,  promising  anything  and  everything  to 
anybody,  and  fulfilling  little  or  nothing. 

Franklin   thus   landed   in   England,    at   eighteen, 

Arriving  stranded,  stranded,  as  far  as  his  plans  for  a  printing  outfit  were 
n  mg  wor  concerned ;  but  again  the  practical  American  lights 
on  his  feet.  He  quickly  got  himself  a  job  in  a  Lon- 
don printing  office.  His  friend,  Ralph,  either  could 
not  or  would  not  find  work;  and  Franklin  had  to 
support  both,  until  a  fortunate  quarrel  relieved  him 
of  the  further  necessity.  The  funds  advanced  to 
Ralph  and  expended  for  him  were  never  repaid,  how- 
ever. 

After  arrival  in  England,  Franklin  wrote  one  let- 
ter to  Miss  Read,  and  then  just  stopped  writing. 
This,  he  says,  was  another  of  his  great  errata.  He 
later  found  a  better  place  in  Watts's  large  printing 
establishment.      The   other   men   employed   thought 

The  "Water-  they  must  drink,  at  frequent  intervals,  the  heavy  Eng- 

American."  •,.,-.  *  in.i«  i  i 

lish  ale,  to  be  strong  enough  lor  their  work;  yet 
Franklin,  who  drank  only  water,  was,  to  their  aston- 
ishment, able  to  carry  up  a  case  of  type  in  each  hand, 
while  the  beer  drinkers  could  carry  but  one.     "The 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  79 

Water- American' '  they  called  him:    interesting,  how 
far  back  that  particular  tendency  goes  in  our  history! 

Franklin  had  the  strong  instinct  for  social  uplift 
that  marks  the  better  type  of  practical  American ;  social  uplift, 
and  converted  others  of  the  young  men  to  his  water- 
Americanism,  so  that  they,  too,  began  saving  their 
money,  instead  of  spending  it  all  on  beer. 

Late  in  his  stay  in  England,  Franklin,  through  a 
remarkable  swimming  feat,  attracted  the  attention  of 
certain  gentlemen,  who  promised  him  their  sons  as  p^j^^i 
pupils,  if  he  would  remain  and  open  a  swimming 
school.  He  probably  could  have  made  a  good  deal 
of  money,  had  he  accepted ;  but  he  wanted  to  get  back 
home,  so  at  twenty,  he  sailed  for  Philadelphia. 

Arriving,  he  found  his  old  flame,  Deborah  Read,  in 
a  sad  situation.  When  Franklin's  letters  stopped, 
her  mother,  who  disapproved  of  his  courtship  any-  Deborah  Re«S.° 
way,  because  of  his  small  earnings,  had  urged  her  into 
marriage  with  a  potter,  Rogers.  It  was  shortly  re- 
ported that  he  already  had  a  wife,  elsewhere,  so  De- 
borah Read  refused  to  live  with  him.  Then,  he  accu- 
mulated many  debts.  In  those  days  they  had  the 
pleasant  custom  of  imprisoning  a  man  for  debt:  ap- 
parently to  make  it  impossible  for  him  ever  to  pay  it. 
Therefore,  Rogers  fled  to  the  West  Indies,  to  escape 
imprisonment,  leaving  poor  Deborah  Read  neither 
wife  nor  widow.  Franklin  found  her  in  this  distress- 
ing situation.  He  was  very  sorry  for  her;  but  went  With  Keimer 
cheerfully  about  his  business,  and  after  a  brief  period  again> 


80 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


At  twenty-four 
Franklin 
independently 
in  the  printing 
business, 


Franklin's 
newspaper. 


in  another  line,  to  work  again  with  his  old  employer, 
Keimer. 

Franklin  received  such  high  wages  that  he  sus- 
pected Keimer  was  using  him  to  train  the  young  men, 
and  then  intended  to  get  rid  of  him.  To  forestall  this, 
Franklin  and  a  young  friend,  Meredith,  got  the  lat- 
ter's  father  to  advance  the  money,  and  set  up  an 
independent  printing  business.  Meredith  proving 
rather  idle  and  given  to  drink,  after  a  year  or  two, 
Franklin  succeeded  in  borrowing  enough  money  from 
two  other  friends  to  buy  his  partner  out  and  continue 
alone. 

The  young  men  wanted  to  start  a  newspaper;  but 
Keimer,  to  forestall  them,  started  one,  which  he  en- 
titled, The  Universal  Instructor  in  all  the  Arts  and 
Sciences  and  the  Pennsylvania  Gazette.  Its  leading 
article  was  a  reprint  of  a  regular  installment  of  Cham- 
bers Dictionary,  just  then  being  issued  in  England: 
not  very  exciting  reading.  As  a  result,  after  nine 
months,  he  had  but  ninety  subscribers ;  and  was  glad  to 
sell  out  to  Franklin,  in  the  Autumn  of  1729,  when 
Franklin  was  twenty-three.  Thus  Franklin  had  his 
newspaper,  which  he  quickly  made  the  best  in  the 
colonies.  He  dropped  the  heavy  part  of  the  title,  and 
called  it  simply  The  Pennsylvania  Gazette.  It  was  a 
small  affair:  one  sheet  folded,  a  foot  and  a  half  by  a 
foot  in  size;  but  it  was  a  typical  modern  newspaper, 
containing  news  items,  leading  articles,  advertise- 
ments, anecdotes,  broad  jokes,  poems  by  the  poet- 
laureate  and  humorous  pieces.    Indeed,  Franklin  was 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  81 

the  first  "Columnist,"  and  the  best  we  have  had.  Some 
of  those  humorous  pieces,  signed  with  amusing  pseu- 
donyms and  dealing  with  local  satire  of  the  time,  are 
fresh  and  delightful  reading  today. 

Meantime,  with  his  constant  desire  for  self-im- 
provement, Franklin  had  formed  the  "Junto",  a  club  mutual  self- 
of  young  men,  meeting  one  evening  a  week.  Each  imProvement- 
member,  in  turn,  was  to  propose  some  question  in 
Morals,  Politics  or  Natural  Philosophy.  Then  the 
whole  group  was  to  discuss  the  subject  freely  and 
vigorously,  with  direct  contradiction  prohibited,  on 
penalty  of  a  fine.  The  whole  plan  was  admirable, 
as  an  instrument  of  education. 

Since  books  were  scarce,  Franklin  suggested  that 
the  members  bring  those  they  possessed  to  the  com- 
mon meeting  place,  so  that  all  could  have  the  benefit 
of  all  the  books  owned  by  the  group.  The  plan  was 
tried,  but  did  not  work  very  well,  and  the  members 
took  their  books  home.  Then  Franklin  decided  on  a  starting  the 
more  ambitious  plan,  to  start  a  Subscription  Library.  L?brary?tion 
He  had  already  learned  that  one  should  not  say  "I 
am  starting  something",  since  people  would  suspect 
one  is  seeking  to  make  something  out  of  it.  So  he 
went  about  saying  that  a  number  of  gentlemen  were 
thinking  of  starting  a  Subscription  Library,  and  if 
those  approached  would  like  to  come  in,  it  would  be 
possible  to  make  room  for  them.  The  result  was  a 
large  number  of  subscribers  and  a  flourishing  library, 
one  of  the  first  in  the  colonies.  Others  followed ;  and 
Franklin  says : 


82  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

"These  libraries  have  improved  the  general  conversa- 
tion of  the  Americans,  made  the  common  tradesmen  and 
farmers  as  intelligent  as  most  gentlemen  from  other 
countries,  and  perhaps  have  contributed  in  some  degree 
to  the  stand  so  generally  made  throughout  the  Colonies 
in   defense   of  their   privileges."* 

The  founding  of  this  Library  Franklin  calls  his 
"first  project  of  a  public  nature." 

As  we  have  seen,  Franklin  had  passed  through  a 
period  of  typical  Eighteenth  Century  religious  skep- 
ticism. Lacking  the  religious  sanction  and  with  strong 
natural  passions,  in  spite  of  his  sobriety  and  industry, 
of  Franklin.  Franklin  had  fallen  into  certain  vices  of  conduct.    His 

statement  in  the  Autobiography  is  very  frank,  as  to 
the  indiscretions  into  which  "that  hard-to-be-con- 
trolled passion  of  youth"  had  led  him.  Now  he  wished 
to  straighten  up  his  life  in  every  way ;  and  he  thought 
the  first  step  was  to  get  married.  Rather  a  prosaic 
basis,  on  which  to  found  the  greatest  of  life  relation- 
ships; but  Franklin  had  the  limitations,  as  well  as 
the  excellence,  of  the  practical  American. 

He  looked  about  for  an  available  young  woman; 
and  the  nearest  at  hand  was  a  relative  of  the  Godfrey 
family,  with  whom  Franklin  boarded  at  the  time.    He 
straightway  began  courting  her,  and  she  seems  to 
The  practical  nave  Deen  quite  willing ;  but  Franklin  asked  as  dowry, 

American  seeking  ^vith  the  young  woman,  enough  money  to  pay  off  the 
debt  on  his  printing  business:  a  matter  of  a  hundred 
pounds — five  hundred  dollars — quite  a  sum  of  money 


Franklin,  Autobiography,  Complete  Works,  Vol.  I,  pp.  159,  160. 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  83 

for  those  days.  The  Godfreys  said  they  had  no  such 
amount  of  money.  Franklin  modestly  suggested  that 
they  mortgage  the  house  and  raise  it!  In  conse- 
quence, he  was  forbidden  the  house.  Franklin  says 
he  was  not  sure  whether  they  really  wanted  him  to 
stay  away,  or  hoped  he  would  elope  and  marry  the 
girl,  without  the  dowry;  but  he  was  too  shrewd  a 
practical  American  to  be  caught  that  way.  Making 
overtures  in  other  places,  he  found  the  printing  busi- 
ness regarded  as  a  poor  one,  and  that  he  could  not 
expect  a  dowry,  unless  with  a  wife  not  otherwise 
agreeable.  In  this  situation,  and  rather  ashamed  of 
his  treatment  of  her,  anyway,  he  returned  to  his  old 
flame,  Deborah  Read,  living  in  the  deplorable  cir- 
cumstances already  cited. 

There  were  many  obstacles  now  in  the  way  of  mar- 
riage with  her:  Franklin  even  feared  he  might  be 
held  for  her  absconding  husband's  debts ;  but  they  marST^-with  °f 
"ventured  over  all  these  difficulties",  and  he  "took  Deborah  Head. 
her  to  wife,  September  1st,  1730".  It  is  difficult  to 
see  how  the  union  could  have  been  other  than  a  com- 
mon law  marriage,  since  Deborah  Read's  first  mar- 
riage had  not  been  legally  proved  invalid,  nor  Rog- 
ers's death  confirmed. 

His  wife  was  an  admirable  helpmeet  to  Franklin. 
She  was  a  careful  and  thrifty  housekeeper,  and  aided  Mrg<  Franklin's 
in  keeping  shop.     They  took  on  a  line  of  stationery,  ^dustr^ 
soap  and  groceries;  imported,  printed  and  sold  books. 
After  a  time,  Franklin  opened  branch  establishments 
in  other  colonies.     With  his  wife's  full  cooperation 


84 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


How  luxury 
entered  the  family. 


Charming  light 
on  Franklin's 
domestic  life. 


Mrs.  Franklin's 
two  children. 


Attacks  on 
Washington 
by  Benjamin 
Franklin  Bache. 


and  their  joint  frugality,  they  were  steadily  growing 
affluent. 

With  all  their  thrift,  Franklin  says  luxury  did  slip 
into  the  household;  and  he  narrates  its  entrance  so 
charmingly  that  the  passage  is  quoted: 

"My  breakfast  was  a  long  time  bread  and  milk  (no 
tea),  and  I  ate  it  out  of  a  twopenny  earthern  porringer 
with  a  pewter  spoon.  But  mark  how  luxury  will  enter 
families,  and  make  a  progress,  in  spite  of  principle:  be- 
ing called  one  morning  to  breakfast,  I  found  it  in  a 
China  bowl,  with  a  spoon  of  silver;  they  had  been 
bought  for  me  without  my  knowledge  by  my  wife,  and 
had  cost  her  the  enormous  sum  of  three-and-twenty- 
shillings,  for  which  she  had  no  other  excuse  or  apology 
to  make,  but  that  she  thought  her  husband  deserved  a 
silver  spoon  and  China  bowl  as  well  as  any  of  his 
neighbors."* 

Mrs.  Franklin  was  an  excellent  mother  to  her  two 
children.  The  promising  boy  died  in  childhood,  of 
smallpox,  to  the  father's  deep  and  lasting  grief. 
Franklin  urges  parents  to  be  sure  to  have  their  chil- 
dren early  inoculated :  the  terrible  device,  used  before 
vaccination  was  developed,  to  forestall  the  scourge. 
The  daughter  grew  up  to  womanhood,  married  and 
had  children;  and  it  is  one  of  the  ironies  of  history 
that  it  was  her  son  who  wrote  attacks  on  Washington 
in  the  Aurora  newspaper. 

Not  long  after  his  marriage,  Franklin's  son,  Wil- 
liam, was  brought  into  the  family,  and  reared  with 
the  other  children.     The  British  Government  after- 


*  Franklin,  Autobiography,  Complete  Works,  Vol.  I,  p.  171. 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  85 

wards  made  William  royal  Governor  of  New  Jersey, 

probably  in  an  effort  to  bribe  Franklin  to  the  British  wnnam^Made 

cause.     This  action  did  not  influence  Franklin,  but   Governor  of  Ne* 

'  Jersey. 

it  made  William  a  Tory  for  life;  and  the  result  was 
a  break  between  father  and  son,  patched  up  after  the 
Revolution,  but  with  never  again  the  old  friendli- 
ness. 

The  looser  aspects  of  Franklin's  early  personal  life 
caused  bitter  criticism  and  attacks  upon  him,  in  Phil-  Later  bitter 
adelphia  when  he  had  become  famous.  Also,  Phila-  Frankiin's^ife. 
delphia  Society  never  accepted  Mrs.  Franklin,  which 
doubtless  troubled  the  good  lady  not  at  all:  she  was 
as  little  interested  in  Philadelphia  polite  society  as 
it  was  in  her. 

With  warm  and  lasting  affection  on  both  sides,  the 
relation  of  Franklin  and  his  wife  was  wholly  a  bio- 
logical, domestic  and  business  union,  the  wife  sharing  Franklin's  ° 
in  no  degree  her  husband's  rapidly  developing  intel-  domestlc  llfe- 
lectual  life.  In  their  numerous  letters,  exchanged 
during  Franklin's  long  absences  abroad,  each  ad- 
dresses the  other  as  "My  Dear  Child".  Franklin  sends 
her  gifts  of  clothing,  china,  silver  and  other  house- 
hold articles.  The  following  is  a  characteristic  let- 
ter, written  from  London,  to  his  wife,  shortly  after 
Franklin  had  helped  in  securing  the  repeal  of  the 
Stamp  Act: 

"London,  6  April,  1766. 
"My  Dear  Child : — As  the  Stamp  Act  is  at  length  re- 
pealed, I  am  willing  you  should  have  a  new  gown,  which 
you  may  suppose  I  did  not  send  sooner,  as  I  knew  you 


86  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

would  not  like  to  be  finer  than  your  neighbors,  unless 
in  a  gown  of  your  own  spinning.  Had  the  trade  between 
the  two  countries  totally  ceased,  it  was  a  comfort  to  me 
to  recollect  that  I  had  once  been  clothed  from  head  to 
foot  in  woolen  and  linen  of  my  wife's  manufacture, 
that  I  never  was  prouder  of  any  dress  in  my  life,  and 
that  she  and  her  daughter  might  do  it  again  if  it  was 
necessary.  I  told  the  Parliament  that  it  was  my  opin- 
ion, before  the  old  clothes  of  the  Americans  were  worn 
out,  they  might  have  new  ones  of  their  own  making.  I 
have  sent  you  a  fine  piece  of  Pompadour  satin,  fourteen 
yards,  cost  eleven  shillings  a  yard;  a  silk  negligee  and 
petticoat  of  brocaded  lutestring  for  my  dear  Sally,  with 

ktterao^Franklin         two  dozen  gloves>  four  bottles  of  lavender  water,  and 
to  his  wife.  two  little  reels.     The  reels  are  to  screw  on  the  edge  of 

the  table,  when  she  would  wind  silk  or  thread.  The  skein 
is  to  be  put  over  them,  and  winds  better  than  if  held  in 
two  hands.  There  is  also  a  gimcrack  corkscrew,  which 
you  must  get  some  brother  gimcrack  to  show  you  the 
use  of.  In  the  chest  is  a  parcel  of  books  for  my  friend 
Mr.  Coleman,  and  another  for  cousin  Colbert.  Pray  did 
he  receive  those  I  sent  him  before?  I  send  you  also  a 
box  with  three  fine  cheeses.  Perhaps  a  bit  of  them  may 
be  left  when  I  come  home.  Mrs.  Stevenson  has  been 
very  diligent  and  serviceable  in  getting  these  things  to- 
gether for  you,  and  presents  her  best  respects,  as  does 
her  daughter,  to  both  you  and  Sally.  There  are  two 
boxes  included  in  your  bill  of  lading  for  Billy. 


"There  are  some  droll  prints  in  the  box,  which  were 
given  me  by  the  painter,  and  being  sent  when  I  was  not 
at  home,  were  packed  up  without  my  knowledge.  I 
think  he  was  wrong  to  put  in  Lord  Bute,  who  had  noth- 
ing to  do  with  the  Stamp  Act.     But  it  is  the  fashion  to 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 


87 


abuse  the  nobleman,  as  the  author  of  all  mischief.  Love 
to  Sally  and  all  friends.  I  am,  my  dear  Debby,  your  af- 
fectionate husband, 

"B.  Franklin."* 
Mrs.  Franklin's  letters  deal  only  with  the  children, 
neighborhood  gossip,  household  affairs.  Her  force- 
ful personality  is  evident  in  the  vigorous  freedom  with 
which  she  expresses  herself;  but  she  was  all  but  illit- 
erate, and  is  the  original  phonetic  speller.  She  had 
evidently  heard  an  occasional  long  word  from  her 
learned  husband's  lips,  and  she  uses  it  correctly,  with 
shrewd  native  intelligence;  but  the  spelling  is  so  de- 
lightfully spontaneous  that  one  has  often  to  read  the 
word  several  times,  to  be  sure  what  it  is  intended  to  be. 
The  following  is  one  of  her  characteristic  letters; 
written  shortly  after  receiving  news  of  Franklin's  ar- 
rival for  his  third  stay  in  England : 

"As  I  have  but  very  little  time  to  write  as  the  rodes 
is  so  very  bad  I  shall  only  to  joyne  with  you  in 

senser  thanks  to  god  for  your  presevevoashon  and  Safe 
a  rivel  o  what  reson  have  you  and  I  to  be  thankful  for 
maney  meney  (?)  we  have  reseved. 

"Billey  and  his  wife  is  in  town  they  came  to  the  rases 
lodged  at  Mr.  Galloway  but  Spente  yisterday  at  our 
house  and  Mr.  William's  Brother  we  was  att  diner  I  sed 
I  had  not  aney  thing  but  vitels  for  I  cold  not  get  aney 
thing  for  a  deserte  but  who  knows  but  I  may  treet  you 
with  sum  thing  from  Ingland  and  as  we  was  at  tabel 
Mr.  Sumain  (?)  Came  and  sed  the  poste  had  gone  by 
with  the  letters  that  the  packit  had  brought  so  I  had  the 
pleshuer  of  treeting  quite  grand  indeed  and  our  littel 

*  Franklin,  Letter  to  his  wife  from  London,  April  6th,   1766:     Com- 
plete Works,  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  457-459. 


Character  of 
Mrs.  Franklin's 
letters  to  her 
husband. 


A  characteristic 
letter  of  April 
7th,  1765. 


88  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

Company  as  cherful  and  hapey  as  oney  in  the  world  none 
excepted  o  my  dear  hough  hapey  am  I  to  hear  that  you 
air  safe  and  well  hough  dus  your  armes  doe  was  John 
of  servis  to  you  is  your  Cold  quite  gon  o  I  long  to  know 
the  partic  (?)  hear  I  must  levef  of  Salley  not  up  as  she 
was  at  the  Assembly  last  night  with  her  Sister  and  I 
have  spook  to  more  than  twenty  sense  I  wrote  the  above. 

jfc  afe  ji£  Aji  ii£ 

"aur  one  famely  is  well  and  sendes  Duty  I  am  told  that 
my  old  naber  Mrs.  Emson  is  to  be  in  London  my  love  to 
her  and  give  her  a  kis  from  me  adoe  my  Dear  child  and 
take  caire  of  youre  selef  for  maneys  sake  as  well  as  your 
one. 

"I  am  your  a  feckshonet  wife 

"April  7',  1765.  D.  Franklin."* 

To  consider  a  more  formal  example  of  Mrs.  Frank- 
lin's correspondence,  read  the  following  brief  letter 
of  introduction,  given  to  Dr.  Bond's  son,  for  presen- 
tation to  Franklin  in  London.  It  is  certainly  brief 
and  effective,  and  must  have  been  delivered  by  the 
bearer  with  much  satisfaction : 

"My  Dear  Child— The  bairer  of  this  is  the  Son  of 
Dr.  Phinis  Bond  his  only  son  and  a  worthey  young  man 
he  is  a  going  to  studey  the  Law  he  desired  a  line  to  you 

A  delightful  letter       j  keiieve  yOU  have  such  a  number  of  worthey  young  Jen- 
of  introduction,  J  .  , 

written  by  Mrs.  telmen  as  ever  wente  to  gather  I  hope  to  give  you  plesh- 

Frankhn  in  1770.  uer  ^Q  gee  suc\i  a  nUmbe  of  fine  youthes  from  your  one 
countrey  which  will  be  an  Honour  to  thar  parentes  and 
Countrey. 

I  am  my  Dear  child  your  ffeckshonot  wife 
Ocktober  ye  11,  1770.  D.  Franklin."! 


*  Deborah  Franklin,  Letter  to  her  husband,  April  7,  1765:  Franklin, 
Complete  Works,  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  375,  376. 

f  Deborah  Franklin,  Letter  to  her  husband,  October  11th,  1770: 
Franklin,  Complete  Works,  Vol.  IV.  pp.  369,  370. 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  89 

With  all  the  biological  validity,  domestic  warmth 
and  business  cooperation  of  Franklin's  married  life,  S^6  p^ctkaT11  °f 
it  is  characteristic  of  him,  as  the  practical  American  American- 
in  limitation  as  well  as  excellence,  that  there  is  no 
high  spiritual  relationship,  in  either  love  or  friendship, 
during  his  entire  life. 

Now  married,  the  head  of  a  family,  his  business 
rapidly  prospering,  Franklin  wished  to  complete  the 
straightening  up  of  his  personal  character  and  life. 
So  he  "Conceived  the  bold  and  arduous  project  of 
arriving  at  moral  perfection":  no  less!  As  a  prac- 
tical American,  he  planned  the  pursuit  systematically 
and  thoroughly.  He  made  a  list  of  all  the  virtues, 
in  which  he  thought  he  particularly  needed  discipline,  pursuit  of  moral 
There  were  twelve ;  a  Quaker  friend  suggested  a  thir-  Perfectlon> 
teenth,  Humility :  Franklin  probably  would  not  have 
thought  of  that,  had  his  Quaker  friend  not  suggested 
it.  He  procured  and  ruled  a  blank  book,  with  spaces 
for  grading  his  conduct  in  each  virtue,  by  the  week. 
Under  each  virtue,  he  placed  an  appropriate  motto. 

The  first  virtue,  in  which  he  conceived  the  need  of 
discipline,  was  Temperance;  and  under  it  the  coun-  Franklin's 
sel  "Eat  not  to  dullness;  drink  not  to  elevation.',  virtues.6 
Then,  he  thought  himself  too  much  given  to  garrulous 
talk.  The  second  virtue  was,  therefore,  Silence ;  with 
the  legend,  "Speak  not  but  what  may  benefit  others 
or  yourself;  avoid  trifling  conversation."  Next  was 
Order:  a  virtue  Franklin  never  was  able  to  acquire. 
Then  followed:  Resolution,  Frugality,  Industry, 
Sincerity,  Justice,  Moderation,  Cleanliness,  Tranquil- 


90 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


virtues  chosen. 


Plan  for  acquiring 
the  several  virtues. 


lity,  Chastity,  and  finally,  Humility,  with  the  motto, 
"Imitate  Jesus  and  Socrates":  a  high  endeavor! 

Please  note  that,  with  the  exception  of  Humility, 
mce  of  the  and  possibly  Tranquillity,  there  is  no  high  spiritual 
virtue  among  these.  They  are  all,  as  Franklin  inter- 
preted them,  the  prudential  virtues,  that  concern  suc- 
cess in  the  practical  conduct  of  life.  Franklin  real- 
ized that  it  would  be  difficult  to  attempt  to  practise 
all  thirteen  virtues  at  the  same  time.  So  he  decided 
to  focus  on  one  virtue  each  week;  which  gave  him, 
of  course,  considerable  latitude  with  reference  to  the 
other  twelve.  The  first  week  he  practised  Temper- 
ance, hoping  it  would  become  sufficiently  a  habit  to 
carry  over  into  the  second  week,  when  he  centered  on 
Silence.  Similarly,  he  trusted  that  Temperance  and 
Silence  would  last  into  the  third  week,  when  he  en- 
deavored to  learn  Order;  and  so  on,  through  the  list. 

Thirteen  virtues,  thirteen  weeks;  four  times  thir- 
teen is  fifty- two:  he  would  have  four  systematic 
courses  in  the  virtues  each  year.  He  made  an  "Order 
of  the  Day",  with  prescribed  hours  for  rising,  work- 
ing, reading,  conversing,  retiring.  He  remade  a  Lit- 
urgy, earlier  written,  with  a  prayer  to  "Powerful 
Goodness",  as  he  now  called  the  Divine  Being. 

The  discipline  went  bravely  forward ;  but  Franklin 
had  particular  difficulty  with  "Order" ;  he  never  could 
learn  to  keep  his  papers  and  surroundings  with  neat- 
ness. After  some  time,  he  began  to  wonder  whether 
moral  perfection  was  really  intended  for  human  na- 
ture.    He  says  he  was  reminded  of  an  incident  oc- 


The  four  courses 
in  virtue  each 
year. 


Special  difficulty 
with  "Order." 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  •  91 

curring  in  his  neighborhood;  which  may  be  con- 
densed as  follows:  a  man,  going  to  purchase  an  ax,  speckied  ax.e 
found  it  sharp  on  the  edge,  but  otherwise  rusty.  The 
seller  said,  "you  turn  the  grindstone,  and  I  will 
quickly  brighten  it  up  for  you."  So  he  pressed  the 
ax  on  hard,  until  the  one  turning  said,  "Well,  I  guess 
that  will  about  do."  "O  no",  said  the  other,  "See,  it 
is  ail  speckled."  The  purchaser  replied,  "O  well,  I 
like  it  better  speckled". 

Franklin  says  it  was  this  way  with  the  pursuit  of 
moral  perfection:  he  began  to  wonder  whether,  after  Humor  again 

L  °  saving  Franklin 

all,  a  few  faults  were  not  desirable,  to  keep  one  hu-  from  the  fate  of 
man.    Again,  it  was  the  saving  grace  of  humor,  which 
kept  Franklin  from  becoming  a  moral  pharisee. 

The  one  permanent  result,  from  his  discipline  in 
the  virtues,  which  Franklin  emphasizes,  concerned  ?ve0rp7n7oni pride 
Humility.  He  states  that  his  natural  tendency  was  to 
be  dogmatic  and  over-bearing  in  expressing  his  opin- 
ions. He  carefully  and  successfully  schooled  himself 
to  correct  this  fault.  The  valuable  life-consequence 
is  stated  in  the  following  passage,  closing  that  portion 
of  the  Autobiography  written  in  France  at  seventy 
eight : 

"The  modest  way  in  which  I  propos'd  my  opinions 
procur'd  them  a  readier  reception  and  less  contradic-        portion^  °the  ^ 
tions  :   I  had  less  mortification  when  I  was  found  to  be  in        Autobiography 
,i  j    T  •!  -i.j       .,i        ,r  ,  written   in  France, 

the  wrong,  and  I  more  easily  prevaird  with  others  to        in  1784    statinp- 

give  up  their  mistakes  and  join  with  me  when  I  hap-        one  important 

t   ,      i       •      ,i         •    -i  ,  result  of  the 

pened  to  be  m  the  right.  course  in  virtue> 

"And  this  mode,  which  I  at  first  put  on  with  some 

violence  to  natural  inclination,  became  at  length  so  easy, 


92 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  Almanac  in 
colonial  life. 


Franklin's   want 
of   a  Philomath. 


Creation  of  Poor 
Richard. 


and  so  habitual  to  me,  that  perhaps  for  these  fifty  years 
past  no  one  has  ever  heard  a  dogmatical  expression  es- 
cape me.  And  to  this  habit  (after  my  character  of  in- 
tegrity) I  think  it  principally  owing  that  I  had  early  so 
much  weight  with  my  fellow-citizens  when  I  proposed 
new  institutions,  or  alterations  in  the  old,  and  so  much 
influence  in  public  councils  when  I  became  a  member; 
for  I  was  but  a  bad  speaker,  never  eloquent,  subject  to 
much  hesitation  in  my  choice  of  words,  hardly  correct 
in  language,  and  yet  I  generally  carried  my  points. 

"In  reality,  there  is,  perhaps,  no  one  of  our  natural 
passions  so  hard  to  subdue  as  pride.  Disguise  it,  strug- 
gle with  it,  beat  it  down,  stifle  it,  mortify  it  as  much  as 
one  pleases,  it  is  still  alive,  and  will  every  now  and  then 
peep  out  and  show  itself ;  you  will  see  it,  perhaps,  often 
in  this  history ;  for,  even  if  I  could  conceive  that  I  had 
compleatly  overcome  it,  I  should  probably  be  proud  of 
my  humility."* 

Every  printer  had  to  publish  his  Almanac :  it  was 
the  Fade  Mecum  of  colonial  life,  hanging  from  a  nail 
beside  the  open  fire-place,  in  every  settler's  home.  It 
gave  the  phases  of  the  sun,  moon  and  tides,  bits  of 
surviving  Astrological  prophesying,  fragments  of 
prose  and  verse:  it  was  everybody's  Handbook.  The 
editor  and  compiler  was  given  the  impressive  name  of 
"Philomath",  mathematical  scholar  or  lover  of  mathe- 
matics. While  Franklin  lived  with  the  Godfreys,  Mr. 
Godfrey  served  as  his  philomath ;  after  his  break  with 
the  family,  he  had  none,  and  decided  to  be  his  own. 
To  this  end  he  invented  an  imaginary  character,  Rich- 
ard Saunders — "Poor  Richard":    possibly  his  remi- 


*  Franklin,  Autobiography:    Complete  Works,  Vol.  I,  pp.   188,  189. 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  93 

niscences  of  Sir  Roger  de  Coverley  in  the  old  volume 

of  Spectator  Papers,  helped  him  here ;  and  for  twenty 

six  years,  from  the  age  of  twenty-seven  to  fifty-two,  annual  issues1  of 

Franklin  edited  his  Almanac  through  Poor  Richard.  Iiman^cchard's 

It  is  significant  of  Franklin's  literary  skill  that  this 

purely  fictitious  character  quickly  became  the  best 

known  man  in  the  colonies. 

Franklin's  problem  was  to  sell  his  Almanac;  and 
he  hit  upon  a  brilliant,  humorous  device,  to  get  a  hear-  The  literary  hoax 

to   ^Pll    flif* 

ing.     The  philomath  of  the  chief  rival  Almanac  was  Almanac,  carried 
a  certain  Titan  Leeds;  and  Franklin  had  Poor  Rich-  °? p^RkharSr 
ard  solemnly  prophesy,  as  revealed  by  the  stars,  the  for  a  period  of 
death  of  Titan  Leeds,  at  a  certain  hour,  of  a  certain 
day,  of  the  ensuing  year.    Titan  Leeds  was  naturally 
furious :  he  replied  with  an  excited  repudiation  of  his 
announced  death,  upbraiding  Richard  Saunders  for 
his  scurrilous  trick.     Everybody  chuckled,  dropped 
by  Franklin's  shop,  and  bought  his  Almanac. 

In  the  next  year's  issue,  Richard  Saunders  gravely 
states  that  he  does  not  know  just  at  what  hour,  of 
what  day,  Titan  Leeds  died,  but  is  quite  sure  that  he 
is  dead;  for  Titan  Leeds  was  his  friend,  and  could 
not  possibly  have  written  the  vicious  attack  upon  him, 
appearing  under  Titan  Leeds's  name.  Leeds  shrieked 
in  response  that  he  was  not  dead  and  didn't  intend  to 
die,  and  it  was  all  a  dirty  trick,  anyway.  Everybody 
chuckled,  dropped  by  Franklin's  shop,  and  bought  his 
Almanac. 

The  following  year,  Poor  Richard  states  that  Titan 
Leeds  really  is  dead;  but  that  his  Ghost  pretends  to 


94 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


be  living  and  to  write  Almanacs.  Franklin  closed  the 
hoax  with  a  letter,  purporting  to  be  from  Titan  Leeds, 
in  the  next  world,  to  his  friend,  Richard  Saunders,  in 
this.  The  result  was  that  Poor  Richard's  Almanac 
was  brilliantly  successful,  selling  ten  thousand  copies 
a  year. 

This  was  due,  further,  to  its  real  superiority  and 
Unique  superiority  unique  originality:  it  was  well  worth  buying!  Even 
Almanac.1"  t°  the  conventional  data,  Franklin  gave  an  amusing 

turn.  Note  the  delightful  satire,  not  only  on  Astrol- 
ogy, but  on  colonial  pronunciation,  in  the  following 
typical  forecast  of  the  year  as  revealed  by  the  stars: 


A  typical  passage 
of  humorous 
prophesy  from  the 
Almanac  of  1736. 


"During  the  first  visible  eclipse  Saturn  is  retrograde: 
for  which  reason  the  crabs  will  go  sidelong  and  the  rope- 
makers  backward.  Mercury  will  have  his  share  in  these 
affairs,  and  so  confound  the  speech  of  the  people,  that 
when  a  Pennsylvanian  would  say  Panther  he  shall  say 
Painter.  When  a  New  Yorker  thinks  to  say  This  he 
shall  say  Diss,  and  the  people  of  New  England  and  Cape 
May  will  not  be  able  to  say  Cow  for  their  lives,  but  will 
be  forced  to  say  Keow  by  a  certain  involuntary  twist  in 
the  root  of  their  tongues.  No  Connecticut  man  nor 
Marylander  will  be  able  to  open  his  mouth  this  year  but 
Sir  shall  be  the  first  or  last  syllable  he  pronounces,  and 
sometimes  both.   *   *   * 

This  year  the  stone-blind  shall  see  but  very  little ;  the 
deaf  shall  hear  but  poorly ;  and  the  dumb  sha'n't  speak 
very  plain.  And  it's  much,  if  my  Dame  Bridget  talks  at 
all  this  year.  Whole  flocks,  herds,  and  droves  of 
sheep,  swine  and  oxen,  cocks  and  hens,  ducks  and  drakes, 
geese  and  ganders  shall  go  to  pot ;  but  the  mortality 
will  not  be  altogether  so  great  among  cats,  dogs,  and 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  95 

horses.  As  to  old  age,  't  will  be  incurable  this  year,  be- 
cause of  the  years  past.  And  towards  the  Fall  some 
people  will  be  seized  with  an  unaccountable  inclination 
to  roast  and  eat  their  own  ears :  Should  this  be  called 
madness,  Doctors?  I  think  not.  But  the  worst  disease 
of  all  will  be  a  certain  most  horrid,  dreadful,  malignant, 
catching,  perverse  and  odious  malady,  almost  epidemi- 
cal, insomuch  that  many  shall  run  mad  upon  it ;  I  quake 
for  very  fear  when  I  think  on't :  for  I  assure  you  very 
few  will  escape  this  disease,  which  is  called  by  the 
learned  Albromazar  Lacko'mony."* 

This  delightful  humor  marked  all  features  of  the 
Almanac.  There  were  verses,  original  and  repro-  Various  features 
duced;  jokes  and  stories,  sometimes  rather  broad,  but 
which  pleased  the  frontier  audience;  and  Franklin 
ransacked  literature,  ancient  and  modern,  for  maxims 
and  wise  sayings.  In  fact,  the  quarter  of  a  century  of 
Almanacs  contains  what  is  probably  the  greatest  and 
most  comprehensive  collection  of  proverbial  wisdom  The  amazing 
ever  compiled.     Some  of  these  pungent  sayings  were,  collectlon  of. 

r  r       °  J      &  '    proverbial  wisdom. 

of  course,  original  with  Franklin,  but  many  more 
were  borrowed ;  and  his  skill  lay  especially  in  the  selec- 
tion and  redressing  of  them.  To  appreciate  their 
range,  consider  a  few  from  the  vast  number: 

"The  proof  of  gold  is   fire;  the  proof   of  a  woman,        From  Franklin's 
t  t       ,  i  ,>     »  ,,  own  experience, 

gold ;   the  prool  or  a  man,  a  woman.  r 

"There  is  no  little  enemy."  Shrewd  observa- 

J      m  tion  of  life. 

"Three  may  keep  a  secret,  if  two  of  them  are  dead." 

"Fish  and  visitors  smell  in  three  days."  humor. 


*  Franklin,  From  Poor  Richard's  Almanac  of  1736:     Complete  Works, 
Vol.  I,  pp.  458,  459. 


96 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Moral  wisdom. 
Social  uplift. 

True  today  as 
when  Franklin 
printed  it! 

Among   Franklin' 
favorites. 


Father  Abraham' 
speech   and  its 
success  over  the 
world. 


Franklin  as 
teacher  of  the 
virtues  that  have 
characterized 
American  life. 


"Wealth  is  not  his  that  has  it,  but  his  that  enjoys  it." 

"The  noblest  question  in  the  world  is,  What  good  may 
I  do  in  it?" 

"Keep  your  eyes  wide  open  before  marriage;  half- 
shut  afterwards." 

"Industry  need  not  wish." 

"The  used  key  is  always  bright." 

"Three  removes  are  as  bad  as  a  fire." 

"It  is  hard  for  an  empty  sack  to  stand  upright."* 

In  the  last  issue  of  his  Almanac,  that  for  1758, 
Franklin  created  another  imaginary  character,  Father 
Abraham,  portraying  him  as  making  a  long  speech  at 
a  public  auction,  in  which  he  quotes  many  of  the  best 
maxims  and  proverbs  Poor  Richard  had  fathered 
during  the  quarter  of  a  century.  This  humorous  Val- 
edictory of  Poor  Richard  caught  the  imagination  of 
the  world.  It  was  reprinted  separately,  translated 
into  French  and  some  other  languages,  read  all  over 
the  world;  and  it  helped  to  prepare  the  enthusiastic 
welcome  accorded  Franklin,  afterwards,  in  England 
and  France.  It  has  been  reprinted  more  than  seventy 
times  in  England,  and  more  than  fifty  in  France. 

Through  the  pungent  ethical  wisdom  of  Poor 
Richard's  Almanac,  with  the  influence  of  his  own  pic- 
turesque personality,  Franklin  became  really  the 
Schoolmaster  of  the  Colonies,  establishing  the  range 
of  virtues  which  to  this  day  have  ever  characterized 
the  practical  American,  in  ideal  if  not  always  in 
practice. 


*  Franklin,  Typical  Proverbs  from  Poor  Richard's  Almanacs : 
plete  Works,  Vol.  I,  pp.  443-456. 


Com- 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  97 

By  the  age  of  forty-two  Franklin  had  become  so 
successful  that  he  was  able  to  retire  from  active  busi-  o/fSScS'b8 
ness,  under  a  contract  with  his  foreman,  which  was  to  D^nSs^*™™ 
pay  him  1000  pounds,  about  $5000  a  year,  for  the  next  forty-two. 
eighteen  years.    This  indicates  how  really  affluent  he 
had  already  become.    He  had  established  branches  of 
his  printing  business  in  other  colonies,  shrewdly  used 
his  carefully  saved  money  in  buying  Philadelphia  real 
estate,  and  was  now  the  successful,  self-made,  practi- 
cal American.    His  own  statement  is  that  he  retired 
from  active  business  for  study,  scientific  research  and   Franklin's  reasons 

.  J  for  retiring  from 

public  service.     Of  these,  the  last  became  an  unex-  active  business. 
pectedly  large  and  onerous  element  of  the  latter  half 
of  his  life. 

Meantime,  Franklin  continued  his  studies.  At  this 
period  of  his  life,  he  mastered  a  good  reading  knowl-  Language  studies. 
edge  of  French,  then  Italian  and  then  Spanish;  and, 
at  this  point,  discovered  that  he  could  read  Latin, 
without  ever  having  studied  it.  That  is,  of  course, 
true:  anyone  who  reads  fluently  those  Romance 
tongues  can  understand  their  common  mother.  Frank- 
lin's remarks  on  practical  teaching  of  the  languages 
are  still  instructive  to  the  teacher  of  today. 

Franklin's  public  service  had  begun  long  before 
his  retirement  from  active  business ;  and  in  it  he  shows 
an  interesting  combination  of  entirely  unselfish  devo- 
tion to  the  general  welfare,  with  a  frequent  use  of  his 
public  services  to  advance  his  private  interests.  As 
Clerk  of  the  Assembly,  he  was  able  to  secure  the 
official  printing;  and  when  elected  a  member,  serving 


98  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

ten  consecutive  years,  he  got  his  son,  William,  ap- 
pointed clerk,  in  order  to  retain  the  government  print- 
ing :  the  practical  American !  He  differed  from  Wash- 
Amazing  range       ington  in  seeking  the  appointment  of  relatives  to  pub- 
of  iSf^SSi         nc  office,  but  never  to  sinecures,  or  to  the  detriment 

puouc  service* 

of  the  service.  He  was  Deputy  Postmaster  and  later 
Postmaster  General.  He  organized  a  city  Watch 
and,  at  thirty,  a  volunteer  Fire  Company,  which  func- 
tioned efficiently  for  fifty-five  years.  He  founded  the 
long  famous  American  Philosophical  Society,  which 
was  practically  an  outgrowth  of  the  earlier  Junto. 
He  established  an  Academy,  for  the  youth  of  the 
Colony,  from  which  developed  the  University  of 
Pennsylvania.  With  Dr.  Bond,  he  helped  to  found 
the  first  Hospital  in  America. 

Indefatigable  in  scientific  investigation,  Franklin's 
interest  was  less  in  pure  Science,  than  in  discoveries 
and  inventions  of  immediate  practical  application.  He 

practical11  scientist,  invented,  before  leaving  business,  the  Franklin  Stove, 
that  still  bears  his  name:  that  iron  open  fireplace, 
economizing  fuel,  increasing  heat  and  retaining  the 
free  ventilation  of  the  room. 

Belief  in  the  value       Franklin  was  one  of  the  early  believers  in  fresh  air, 

of  fresh  air.  .  -n 

at  a  time  when  most  persons  were  still  under  the  su- 
perstition that  night  air  was  dangerous,  and  so  kept 
their  windows  tightly  closed.  John  Adams  quaintly 
narrates  an  incident  of  a  journey  in  1776,  when  he 
and  Franklin  had  to  sleep  in  one  bed  in  a  small  room, 
with  no  chimney.  Adams  wanted  the  window  shut, 
but  Franklin  prevailed  upon  him  to  open  it  wide  and 


inventions. 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  99 

jump  into  bed;  then  lectured  him  on  the  value  of  fresh 
air,  until  Adams  fell  asleep  under  the  argument. 

Franklin  did  not  patent  his  stove  because  he  wished 
the  colonists  to  benefit  by  it ;  but  a  British  ironmonger 
took  out  a  patent  on  it,  and  made  a  fortune  selling 
Franklin's  stove  to  the  colonists. 

Franklin  invented  an  improved  street  lamp,  and 
brightened  the   streets   of  Philadelphia;   introduced  The  wide  range 

,«,.,.  .  •-!.  •  jm  of  Franklin's 

mineral  fertilizers  m  agriculture;  improved  the  con-  practical 
struction  and  draft  of  chimneys;  made  important 
technical  changes  in  ships,  sails,  cordage:  there  is 
hardly  a  phase  of  practical  life  he  did  not  touch  help- 
fully. He  invented  the  "Armonica",  an  instrument 
of  musical  glasses,  playing  upon  it  to  his  own  delight, 
and  taking  it  to  England  with  him.  His  Essay  on 
"The  Peopling  of  Countries"  contains  at  least  the 
germ  of  Malthus's  epoch-making  work.  He  resented 
the  bother  of  two  sets  of  spectacles,  for  near  and  dis- 
tant vision;  so  while  in  France,  he  had  the  lenses  cut 
in  two,  and  half  of  each  fitted  in  the  frame ;  and  he  had 
invented  bifocal  glasses.  He  quaintly  remarked  that, 
dining  out,  he  could  see  his  food  better  with  the  lower 
lens,  and  the  expression  of  persons  across  the  table 
with  the  upper,  which  helped  him  to  understand  their 
French. 

At  forty-one  he  began  his  experiments  with  Elec- 
tricity: he  was  fascinated  with  this  marvel,  ground 
out  of  silk  and  glass;  and  early  occupied  with  the 
problem  whether  it  was  not  identical  with  the  age-old 
terror  of  lightning.     To  his  English  correspondent, 


100  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

Collinson,  he  suggested  a  testing  experiment!  admir- 
able, but  rather  hard  on  the  experimenter :  a  man  was 
to  stand  on  a  high  church  tower,  in  a  thunder  storm, 
Experiments  in       and  hold  an  iron  rod  pointed  toward  the  clouds.     It 
Electricity.  js  sa^  -q^j.  ^[s  experiment  actually  was  carried  out  in 

France,  without  killing  the  operator!  At  forty-four 
Franklin  announced  his  invention  of  the  lightning 
rod.  At  forty-six  he  sent  Collinson  a  description  of 
his  Kite  experiment,  which  he  is  believed  to  have  car- 
ried out  in  June,  1752.  A  kite,  with  an  iron  tip,  was 
flown  during  a  thunder  storm;  and  Franklin,  at  the 
other  end  of  the  cord,  with  an  iron  key  in  his  hand, 
felt  the  distinct  shock,  which  proved  the  identity  of 
lightning  and  electricity. 

It  has  recently  been  doubted  whether  Franklin 
actually  carried  out  his  experiment,  on  the  ground 
that,  if  successful,  it  would  have  killed  him.  The  argu- 
ment seems  silly ;  for  surely  through  his  kite  and  key, 
as  under  a  tree  struck  by  lightning,  Franklin  could 
have  experienced  any  degree  of  shock,  from  the  slight- 
est tingle  to  death.  I  have  verified  this,  through  avia- 
tors in  the  government  service,  who  tell  me  that,  under 
conditions  analagous  to  Franklin's  experiment,  they 
have  experienced,  during  thunder  storms,  varying  de- 
grees of  electric  shock.  Franklin  definitely  speaks, 
moreover,  in  the  Autobiography,  of  the  "infinite  pleas- 
ure" he  received  in  the  success  of  an  experiment  "I 
made  soon  after  with  a  kite  at  Philadelphia." 

At  any  rate,  the  world  of  the  time  believed  that 
Franklin  carried  out  the  experiment;  and,  with  the 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  101 

invention  of  the  lightning  rod,  it  caught  the  imagina- 
tion of  mankind:  that  Franklin  had  dared  to  seize  How  Franklin's 
Jove's  weapon,  and  that  his  invention  had  rendered  it  discoveries  and 

r       7  m  inventions  in 

harmless!  In  France,  particularly,  the  response  was  Electricity  caught 
enthusiastic.  Later,  when  Franklin  went  to  France,  of  the  world, 
cartoons  were  published  and  widely  circulated,  rep- 
resenting Franklin  seated  on  a  throne,  clutching  the 
lightning  in  one  fist,  a  number  of  scepters  in  the  other, 
a  group  of  dethroned  monarchs  rolling  on  the  ground 
at  his  feet,  with,  underneath,  the  French  legend,  read- 
ing: "He  seized  lightning  from  Heaven  and  the 
scepter  from  Tyrants."  Such  was  the  effect  of  Frank- 
lin's discoveries  in  Electricity  on  the  enthusiastic 
French  mind. 

Like  Washington,  Franklin  saw  from  the  begin- 
ning the  necessity  for  a  union  of  the  Colonies ;  and  as  ¥iT.9t  p1**  for  a 

&  J  .  iTT-  union  of  the 

early  as  1754,  during  the  French  and  Indian  War,  he  Colonies. 
made  the  first  of  his  two  plans  for  that  union. 

When  General  Braddock  planned  his  ill-fated  ex- 
pedition, he  proposed  to  commandeer  horses  and 
wagons  from  Pennsylvania.     Franklin  went  to  see  Franklin's  service 

°  ^      .  .  in  the  Braddock 

General  .Braddock,  urging  him  not  to  do  that,  since  campaign. 
it  would  deeply  offend  the  inhabitants,  but  rather  to 
lease  the  teams.  The  General  asked  how  he  was  to  get 
them,  and  Franklin  promised  to  raise  them  for  him. 
Franklin  did  get  together  a  hundred  and  fifty  teams 
and  wagons,  advancing  a  thousand  pounds  of  his  own 
money  and  giving  his  personal  bond  for  their  safe 
return.  When  the  expedition  met  its  disaster,  claims 
were  made  upon  Franklin  amounting  in  all  to  twenty 


102 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Franklin,  a 
devoted  patriot. 


The  brief  military 
career. 


Difficulties  of 
Pennsylvania 
Colony  as  a 
private  grant. 


thousand  pounds,  practically  a  hundred  thousand  dol- 
lars; and  he  would  have  been  completely  ruined,  had 
the  British  government  not  finally  paid  the  claims. 
This  clearly  shows  how  devoted  a  patriot  Franklin 
was:  with  all  his  shrewdness  in  handling  his  own 
affairs,  cheerfully  risking  all  his  hard-won  wealth  in 
the  service  of  his  country's  cause. 

The  Governor  appointed  Franklin  a  Colonel  of 
militia,  to  defend  the  Northwest  frontier  of  the  Colony 
against  the  Indians.  Franklin  raised  560  men; 
marched  to  Bethlehem  and  Gnadenhut  where  stock- 
ades were  built:  there  was  no  actual  Indian  fighting; 
but  Franklin  showed,  in  his  brief  period  of  military 
service,  the  same  practical  efficiency,  evident  in  every 
task  he  undertook. 

One  characteristic  incident  of  his  short  military  ex- 
perience deserves  mention.  The  Chaplain  came  to  the 
Colonel  and  complained  that  he  could  not  get  the  men 
to  attend  Divine  Service.  Franklin  intimated  that  he 
did  not  wish  to  suggest  anything  that  might  seem  dis- 
respectful to  religion;  but  inquired  if  the  clergyman 
had  thought  of  issuing  the  daily  rum  ration  immedi- 
ately after  the  Service.  The  Chaplain  had  not;  was 
impressed  with  the  idea,  which  he  adopted ;  and  every 
man  attended  thereafter! 

Pennsylvania,  as  a  private  grant  to  William  Penn, 
had  special  difficulties  to  meet.  The  sons  of  William 
Penn,  who  seem  to  have  been  quite  unlike  their  father, 
had  inherited  the  Colony,  and  instructed  the  Govern- 
or to  refuse  any  tax  bill  that  did  not  exempt  the  pro- 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  103 

prietary  estates  from  taxation.  See  how  unfair  that 
was !  Great  areas  of  land  had,  of  course,  been  sold  off 
for  farms,  towns  and  cities;  but  vast  tracts  were  still 
in  the  proprietor's  hands,  made  valuable,  increasingly, 
by  the  settlements  of  the  Colony.     The  Assembly  injustice  of  the 

in  i  ,  i  .11'    ,  •        ,  ,        Penn  heirs  toward 

would  prepare  and  pass  a  tax  bill,  to  raise  troops  to  the  colony. 
protect  the  Colony  and  pay  other  government  ex- 
penses ;  and  the  Governor  would  promptly  veto  it,  be- 
cause taxing  rightly  the  proprietary  estates,  with  all 
others.  The  only  redress  for  the  Assembly  was  to 
refuse  to  pay  the  Governor's  salary:  an  item  insignifi- 
cant in  comparison.  The  whole  struggle  was  merely  a 
flagrant  instance  of  the  age-old  and  age-long  battle 
with  privilege. 

During  the  French  and  Indian  War,  the  Assembly 
had  to  yield:  the  need  for  funds  was  too  urgent;  but 
toward  its  close,  Franklin  was  sent  to  England,  as  a 
representative  of  the  Colony,  to  seek  to  relieve  the 
situation.    He  remained  in  England  five  years,  from  Jranklin's  happy 

°  J  '  five  years  in 

the  age  of  fifty-one  to  fifty-six ;  and  they  were  among  England. 
the  happiest  years  of  his  life.  For  the  first  time,  he 
could  enjoy  constantly  the  society  of  highly  cultivated 
men.  His  fame  had  preceded  him,  and  he  was  wel- 
comed by  leaders  of  thought  and  civilization  every- 
where. He  was  given  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Laws 
by  two  of  the  Scotch  and  one  of  the  English  Universi- 
ties ;  both  Yale  and  Harvard  having  previously  given 
him  the  A.M.  degree. 

He  went  to  live,  in  London,  at  Mrs.  Stevenson's, 
and  her  house  became  a  second  home  to  him.    He  be- 


104 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Travels  and 
contact  with 
scholars. 


The  third  and 
longest  residence 
in  England. 


Franklin  as 
representing  the 
Colonies  to  the 
home  Government. 


came  warmly  attached  to  her  lovely  daughter,  to  whom 
he  wrote  some  of  his  most  charming  letters,  and  earn- 
estly desired  that  his  son,  William,  should  marry  Miss 
Stevenson ;  but  was  as  unsuccessful  as  match-making 
parents  usually  are.  William,  instead,  presented 
Franklin  with  an  illegitimate  grandson,  William  Tem- 
ple Franklin;  and  shortly  afterward  married  a  West 
Indian  lady.  The  grandson  was  reared  entirely  by 
Franklin;  and  was  later  his  secretary  at  the  embassy 
in  Paris. 

The  summers  Franklin  spent  travelling,  with  his 
son,  in  England,  Scotland  and  on  the  Continent.  Of 
one  such  period  in  Scotland,  when  he  had  not  only 
enjoyed  the  beautiful  out-door  world,  but  met  inti- 
mately Hume,  Robertson  and  other  great  scholars,  he 
said  they  were  "six  weeks  of  the  densest  happiness  I 
have  met  with  in  any  part  of  my  life." 

Franklin's  prestige  was  so  great  that  by  taking  per- 
sonally the  responsibility  that  the  Proprietors  would 
not  be  injured,  he  won  the  first  round  of  the  fight  to 
tax  their  estates.  He  came  home  in  1762;  had  two 
busy  years  of  public  service;  and  was  again  sent  to 
England,  in  1764,  at  the  age  of  fifty-eight,  on  the 
business  of  the  Colony.  After  a  time,  he  was  made 
official  representative  of  Pennsylvania,  at  the  home 
Government;  and  later,  Georgia,  Massachusetts  and 
New  Jersey  made  him  their  agent  also.  During  this 
ten  years'  stay  in  England,  Franklin  was  thus  in  the 
position  of  general  representative  of  the  Colonies  to 
the  British  Government. 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  105 

As  before,  Mrs.  Franklin,  who  had  terror  at  the 
thought  of  a  sea  voyage,  refused  to  accompany  or 
join  him.  At  one  time,  Franklin  would  perhaps  have 
settled  in  England  permanently,  had  his  wife  been 
willing  to  come  over.  He  went  again  to  live  at  Mrs. 
Stevenson's;  and  resumed  his  delightful  intercourse 
with  intellectual  leaders,  continuing  his  own  scientific 
experiments. 

Until  Lexington,  Franklin  held  to  the  belief  that  Franklin>s  view 
the  King  meant  well,  but  was  ill  advised  by  bad  min-  of  the  colonial 

^  *  problem. 

isters.  He  thought  that  the  problem  of  the  Colonies 
was,  therefore,  to  get  the  liberal  statesmen  into  power 
in  England,  rather  than  to  break  with  the  home  land : 
the  view  held  by  the  majority  of  Americans,  at  the 
time. 

Using,  unavailingly,  all  his  energies  to  prevent  the 
passage  of  the  Stamp  Act,  once  enacted,  Franklin  ac-  Accepting  the 

*  .  .  Stamp  Act  and 

cepted  it,  and  assumed  the  Colonies  would  peacefully  recommending 
submit.    Asked  by  the  British  Minister  to  suggest  the  at  Philadelphia. 
agent  for  Philadelphia,  Franklin  recommended  his  home!qUenCeS  a 
old  friend,  Hughes,  who  was  forthwith  appointed. 
When  the  news  reached  the  Colony,  there  was  an  up- 
roar of  indignation.    Franklin  was  accused  of  treach- 
ery; Hughes  was  compelled  to  resign  and  his  house 
menaced ;  and  there  was  even  a  threat  to  mob  Frank- 
lin's house.     Mrs.  Franklin  was  urged  to  flee  into 
New  Jersey.     She  sent  the  daughter  away;  but  de- 
cisively refused  to  go,  and  stayed  on  guard.    Fortu- 
nately, the  house  was  not  attacked;  so  the  good  lady 


106 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Franklin's 
examination, 
before  the  House 
of  Commons,  on 
the  effects  of  the 
Stamp  Act. 


Franklin's 
shrewd  wisdom 
as  diplomat.     His 
right  view  of  his 
relation  to  the 
British 
Government. 


did  not  have  to  use  even  a  rolling  pin,  which  no  doubht 
she  could  have  used  most  effectively. 

The  resistance  to  the  Stamp  Act,  with  the  refusal 
of  the  colonists  to  buy  British  made  goods,  led  to  an 
agitation  in  England  for  the  repeal  of  the  Act.  Par- 
liament held  an  Examination  into  its  effects;  and 
Franklin  was  asked  by  certain  liberal  statesmen  to  be 
one  of  those  examined.  Franklin  accepted,  recogniz- 
ing the  unique  opportunity  to  serve  the  American 
cause.  He  was  thoroughly  prepared  for  the  Exam- 
ination ;  and  he  made  of  it  a  masterpiece.  It  is  useless 
to  quote  briefly  from  it:  one  must  read  it  as  a  whole, 
to  realize  Franklin's  adroit  skill  and  far-reaching  wis- 
dom. There  was  nothing  of  his  customary  jesting: 
the  occasion  was  too  serious.  His  replies  were  as 
frank,  as  they  were  skillful,  shrewdly  developing  all 
the  implications  in  the  situation  between  England  and 
her  colonies.  His  Examination  strengthened  the 
American  cause,  helped  to  the  repeal  of  the  Act,  and 
did  much  to  advance  Franklin's  own  prestige  and  in- 
fluence in  England. 

Regarding  himself,  rightly,  not  as  a  foreign  am- 
bassador, but  as  the  representative  of  a  part  of  the 
Empire  to  the  home  Government,  Franklin  took  lib- 
erties that  an  ordinary  ambassador  would  not  dare  to 
take.  He  has  been  severely  criticized  for  this,  as  lack- 
ing in  diplomatic  tact  and  propriety.  The  criticism  is 
wholly  unwarranted.  Franklin's  view  of  his  mission 
was  exactly  the  correct  one;  and  he  did  much  to  win 
liberal  opinion  to  the  justice  of  the  American  cause. 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 


107 


He  even  wrote  political  articles  for  the  British 
papers;  for  which  a  conventional  ambassador  would 
be  sent  home  at  once.  The  articles  were,  of  course, 
unsigned;  but  their  authorship  was  quickly  recog- 
nized. One  of  them  was  upon  "Rules  for  Reducing  a 
Great  Empire  to  a  Small  One."  You  see  the  point: 
if  England  continued  her  policy,  she  would  lose  her 
colonies.  Another  skit  purported  to  be  "An  Edict  of 
the  King  of  Prussia/'  In  it,  Franklin  made  the  King 
of  Prussia  say  that  England  had  been  colonized  by 
the  Saxons,  who  were  his  subjects,  therefore  England 
belonged  to  him.  There  followed  restrictive  edicts  on 
British  manufactures  and  commerce,  absurdly  paral- 
leling those  Britain  enforced  over  the  American  col- 
onies. Franklin  describes  the  excitement  in  a  group 
of  British  statesmen,  on  the  appearance  of  the  article, 
their  exclamations  that  the  impudent  Prussian  King 
would  be  over  soon  with  an  army,  and  then  their 
laughing  recognition  of  his  authorship  and  of  the 
"hit"  that  he  had  made. 

Having  been  abroad  so  long,  however,  Franklin 
failed  to  realize  the  extent  and  strength,  in  the  col- 
onies, of  the  growing  demand  for  independence.  One 
of  the  liberal  statesmen,  warning  him  of  this,  to  prove 
that  the  repressive  measures  did  not  originate  from 
the  British  Government  showed  him  some  confidential 
letters  from  Governor  Hutchinson  of  Massachusetts, 
the  Lieutenant  Governor  and  others,  describing  the 
rioting,  and  asking  that  troops  be  sent  over  to  put 
down  the  rebellion. 


The  newspaper 
articles. 


Franklin's 
humorous   articles 
influencing  public 
opinion  to  the 
American  cause. 


American 
sentiment  for 
independence 
outgrowing 
Franklin. 


Affair  of  the 

Hutchinson 

Letters. 


108 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Franklin's  effort 
to  conciliate 
sentiment  toward 
Britain. 


Consequences   of 
Franklin's  action. 


The  arraignment 
by  Lord 
Wedderburn 
before  the  Privy 
Council. 


Franklin  asked  the  loan  of  the  letters,  thinking 
that,  if  the  Massachusetts  leaders  knew  what  had  been 
written,  their  resentment  toward  Britain  would  be 
mollified.  The  letters  were  lent  to  him,  on  condition 
that  they  should  not  be  copied  nor  allowed  to  get  into 
print.  Franklin  sent  them  over  to  the  Boston  leaders, 
to  be  read  and  returned;  and  John  Adams  and  John 
Hancock  read  them  to  the  Assembly  and  to  others. 
The  Governor,  Hutchinson,  was  a  native  of  New  Eng- 
land ;  and  there  developed  intense  indignation  at  what 
was  regarded  as  his  treachery  to  the  Colony.  The  let- 
ters quickly  got  into  print  in  Boston  and  were  re- 
printed in  London.  Franklin  could  not  explain  the 
situation,  without  betraying  his  friend,  the  liberal 
statesman,  who  had  lent  him  the  letters.  The  result 
was  a  public  scandal,  culminating  in  a  duel  between 
two  prominent  British  statesmen.  Franklin  finally 
came  forward  and  took  the  responsibility  for  the  pub- 
lication of  the  letters,  but,  of  course,  without  explana- 
tion. 

The  consequence  was  that  the  Privy  Council,  to 
have  an  opportunity  to  attack  Franklin,  officially  con- 
sidered the  Massachusetts  petition  for  the  removal  of 
the  Governor.  At  the  sitting,  Franklin  was  subjected 
to  one  of  the  most  scathing  arraignments  any  man 
ever  received,  at  the  hands  of  that  master  of  sarcasm 
and  vituperation,  Lord  Wedderburn.  Franklin,  clad 
in  his  red  velvet  suit,  stood  leaning  against  the  mantel, 
in  motionless  position :  an  expression  of  imperturbable 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN 


109 


serenity  upon  his  face.  Some  thought  Franklin  the 
real  victor  in  the  ordeal. 

His  influence  in  England,  however,  was  now  at  an 
end.     He  was  deprived  of  his  Postmastership  of  the  Return  home  to 
Colonies;  and  was  in  danger  of  arrest.    War  was  in   j^artediy^the 
sight  anyway.     A  last  futile  attempt  was  made  to   struggle  for 

i-i      t-i         i  t  i      -r»    •   •  i  tt     t  i  independence, 

bribe  r  ranklin  to  the  .British  cause.  He  lingered  on, 
in  semi-hiding,  for  a  time,  got  secretly  on  a  ship,  and 
sailed  for  home,  arriving  May  5th,  1775.  Lexington 
had  already  been  fought ;  and  from  that  event,  Frank- 
lin was  convinced  that  no  composition  was  possible, 
and  the  struggle  must  be  carried  through  to  complete 
independence. 

His  wife  had  died  a  few  months  before  his  return; 
and  from  now  on  his  married  daughter  kept  house  for 
him.  The  day  after  his  arrival,  he  was  made  a  deputy 
to  the  second  Continental  Congress.  In  it,  he  pre- 
pared his  second  plan  for  a  union  of  the  Colonies, 
used  all  his  influence  for  a  declaration  of  independ- 
ence, and  was  heart  and  soul  for  the  war.  He  was 
made  Postmaster  General  of  the  United  Colonies; 
served  as  member  of  the  Pennsylvania  legislature  and 
on  the  Committee  of  Public  Safety,  which  carried  on 
the  executive  government  of  the  Colony.  He  helped 
to  devise  the  obstructions  to  prevent  the  British  ships 
coming  up  the  Delaware  river;  was  at  Boston,  in  the 
Autumn,  raising  supplies  for  Washington's  army; 
and  in  the  Winter,  already  seventy,  he  was  sent,  with 
other  commisioners  to  Canada,  to  try  to  bring  Canada 
in  on  the  American  side.     The  journey  failed  of  its 


Incessant  and 
varied  services  of 
the  American 
cause. 


110  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


object,  but  nearly  killed  Franklin.  Then,  in  Septem- 
miss?onnto  France,  ber,  1776,  he  was  appointed  one  of  three  special  com- 
at  seventy.  missioners,  to  go  to  France  and  seek  to  win  her  help 

for  the  American  cause.  Franklin  is  reported  to  have 
said:  "I  am  old  and  good  for  nothing;  but  as  the 
storekeepers  say  of  their  remnants  of  cloth,  I  am  but 
a  fag  end,  you  may  have  me  for  what  you  please;" 
but  there  was  a  dozen  good  years  of  work  and  service 
in  him  yet. 

Franklin,  two  years  later,  used  again  the  "remnant" 
idea,  in  a  letter  to  David  Hartley: 

"Having  nearly  finished  a  long  life,  I  set  but  little 
value  on  what  remains  of  it.  Like  a  draper  when  one 
chaffers  with  him  for  a  remnant,  I  am  ready  to  say: 
As  it  is  only  the  fag  end,  I  will  not  differ  with  you  about 
it;  take  it  for  what  you  please."* 

Silas  Deane  was  already  in  France;  Jefferson  was 
to  accompany  Franklin,  but  declined  because  of  his 
wife's  illness,  and  Arthur  Lee  was  chosen  in  his  place. 
Franklin  secretly  took  ship  on  the  Reprisal,  evaded 
the  threatening  British  cruisers;  and  on  the  last  stage 
of  the  voyage,  his  ship  captured  two  British  merchant- 
men, and  sailed  into  port  with  those  prizes,  enough  to 
pay  the  expenses  of  the  embassy  for  a  long  period  of 
time ! 

Franklin  was  welcomed  in  France  with  a  universal 
wefcom^to  enthusiasm,  accorded  no  other  American.  The  French 

Franklin.  had  read  Father  Abraham's  speech  from  Poor  Rich- 


*  Franklin,  in  letter  to  David  Hartley,  from  Paris,  in  1778:    Complete 
Works,  Vol.  VI,  p.  169. 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  111 

ard's  Almanac,  they  were  dazzled  by  Franklin's  dis- 
coveries in  Electricity,  enthusiastic  over  his  work  as 
statesman :  he  stood  out,  to  them,  sls  the  great  man  of 
America.  The  result  was  he  exercised  an  influence 
no  other  man  could  have  approximated,  completely 
overshadowing  the  other  commissioners. 

France  was  already  assisting  us,  through  a  private 
Company,  not  daring  to  do  so  openly,  as  that  would  The  handicap  of 
have  meant  the  war  with  Britain  she  was  as  yet  un-  jealousies  and 
willing  to  face.  Congress,  not  understanding  the  situ- 
ation, was  not  making  fair  return.  Arthur  Lee  also 
misunderstood;  and,  jealous  anyway  of  Franklin's 
overshadowing  influence,  wrote  bitter  letters  to  Con- 
gress, accusing  his  fellow  commissioners  of  treachery. 
Deane  came  home,  and  was  completely  ruined,  through 
the  attacks  and  misunderstanding.  Franklin  said, 
"Spots  of  dirt  thrown  on  my  character  I  suffered 
while  fresh  to  remain;  I  did  not  choose  to  spread  by 
endeavoring  to  remove  them,  but  relied  on  the  vulgar 
adage  that  they  would  all  rub  off  when  they  were 
dry" ;  and  they  did. 

John  Adams  was  sent  over  to  replace  Deane;  and 
was    scandalized    to    find    Franklin's    papers    and  Franklin  and 

.  ,  pit  John  Adams. 

accounts  in  their  usual  confused  disorder,  and  Frank- 
lin living,  as  guest,  in  the  house  of  a  French  nobleman, 
at  Passy;  but  he  recognized,  nevertheless,  Franklin's 
complete  integrity  in  devoted  service  of  his  country's 
cause.    John  Adams  was  present,  at  the  Academy  of  Meeting  with 

Voltaire. 

Sciences,  when  Franklin  and  Voltaire  met.  The 
crowd,  not  content  with  Anglo-Saxon  handshaking, 


112 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Success  of 
Franklin  in  the 
French  alliance. 


Signing  of  the 
treaty   in 
February,  1778. 


Amazing  services 
as   Ambassador. 


Franklin,  the  chief 
source  of  money 
for  the  war. 


insisted  the  two  great  men  embrace  French  fashion, 
kissing  each  other  on  both  cheeks;  which  they  did. 
The  delighted  throng  murmured,  "How  beautiful  to 
see  Solon  and  Sophocles  embrace!":  Franklin  being 
Solon,  and  Voltaire,  Sophocles,  to  the  enthusiastic 
French  sentiment. 

Burgoyne's  surrender  was  the  added  increment,  to 
Franklin's  great  personal  influence,  which  turned  the 
scale,  and  decided  France  to  come  in  openly  on  the 
American  side.  At  the  signing  of  the  treaty  of  alli- 
ance, February  6th,  1778,  Franklin  wore  the  old  red 
velvet  suit,  in  which  he  had  suffered  Lord  Wedder- 
burn's  arraignment:  a  characteristically  whimsical 
revenge ! 

Adams,  on  his  return,  advised  Congress  to  leave 
but  one  representative  at  Paris;  so  from  1779,  for  his 
remaining  six  years  in  France,  Franklin  was  sole 
plenipotentiary.  Relieved  of  the  bickerings,  he  was 
burdened  with  a  vast  range  of  services.  He  negotiated 
the  exchange  of  prisoners,  served  as  court  for  prize 
ships:  he  was,  in  fact,  making  international  law,  day 
by  day.  He  was,  moreover,  the  chief  source  of  money 
for  the  war,  skillfully  negotiating  those  multiplied 
loans  from  France,  that  made  victory  possible.  Other 
commissioners  came  over,  appointed  to  various  lands ; 
could  not  get  to  their  posts ;  and  Franklin  had  to  find 
money  for  them.  Congress  sent  incessant  drafts,  for 
which  Franklin  had  to  find  funds,  or  suffer  disgrace 
and  dishonor  to  his  country.  Finally,  he  wrote  Con- 
gress that  it  must  cease  drawing  on  him.     Congress 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  113 

promised;  but  went  right  on  issuing  the  drafts,  and 
antedating  them.  Somehow,  without  forfeiting  the 
friendship  of  France,  Franklin  obtained  the  loans  and 
met  them.  This  aspect  of  his  service  alone  is  phe- 
nomenal, and  proves  him  a  great  diplomat. 

Amid  these  incessant  labors,  Franklin  found  time 
to  dine  out,  six  nights  a  week,  and  entertain  the  im-  charming6  and 
portant  Americans  in  Paris  on  the  seventh.  Also,  he  flotations. 
found  leisure  to  carry  on  charming  flirtations  with 
French  ladies  of  the  old  regime.  Madame  Helvetius 
was  particularly  devoted  to  him,  embracing  him  pub- 
licly and  enthusiastically,  whenever  she  met  him  at  a 
ball  or  festival,  much  to  the  scandal  of  puritanical 
Mrs.  John  Adams;  who  wrote  home  that  she  had 
never  witnessed  anything  so  vulgar;  but  Franklin 
liked  it !  Another  of  these  love  passages  was  with  the 
charming  young  matron,  Madame  Brillon,  for  whom 
Franklin  wrote  certain  of  his  most  delightful  little 
Allegories  and  Essays.  Even  Countess  d'Houdetot — 
Rousseau's  Countess  d'Houdetot — gave  a  pompous 
festival  in  his  honor,  greeting  him  with  fulsome  and 
flattering  verses.  Franklin's  vanity  was  tickled;  but 
he  went  right  on  serving  the  American  cause,  with  un- 
wearied fidelity.  It  may  be  said  that  these  flirtations 
went  just  as  far  as  the  ladies  were  willing;  which,  ap- 
parently, was  not  very  far,  with  the  seventy-five  years 
old  Franklin. 

For  the  graver  aspect  of  his  personal  life,  consider 
the  following  portion  of  a  letter  to  Washington,  writ- 
ten in  March,  1780,  at  a  rather  dark  period  of  the 


114 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Evidence  of 
friendship  and 
appreciation  for 
Washington. 


View  of  America's 
future.     Franklin 
never   doubting 
final  victory  in 
the  war  for 
independence. 


war.  It  contains  one  of  Franklin's  expressions,  fre- 
quent in  his  letters  of  this  period,  of  his  feeling  that  his 
life  and  work  were  nearly  over;  but  is  even  more  re- 
markable for  the  closing  enthusiastic  prophesy  of 
America's  recovery  and  progress,  after  the  war: 

"You  would,  on  this  side  of  the  sea,  enjoy  the  great 
reputation  you  have  acquired,  pure  and  free  from  those 
little  shades  that  the  jealousy  and  envy  of  a  man's  coun- 
trymen and  contemporaries  are  ever  endeavoring  to  cast 
over  living  merit.  Here  you  would  know  and  enjoy 
what  posterity  will  say  of  Washington.  For  a  thousand 
leagues  have  nearly  the  same  effect  with  a  thousand 
years.  The  feeble  voice  of  those  grovelling  passions  can- 
not extend  so  far  either  in  time  or  distance.  At  present 
I  enjoy  that  pleasure  for  you;  as  I  frequently  hear  the 
old  generals  of  this  martial  country,  who  study  the 
maps  of  America  and  mark  upon  them  all  your  opera- 
ions,  speak  with  sincere  approbation  and  great  applause 
of  your  conduct;  and  join  in  giving  you  the  character 
of  one  of  the  greatest  captains  of  the  age. 

"I  must  soon  quit  this  scene,  but  you  may  live  to  see 
our  country  flourish,  as  it  will  amazingly  and  rapidly 
after  the  war  is  over ;  like  a  field  of  young  Indian  corn, 
which  long  fair  weather  and  sunshine  had  enfeebled  and 
discolored,  and  which  in  that  weak  state,  by  a  thunder- 
gust  of  violent  wind,  hail,  and  rain,  seemed  to  be  threat- 
ened with  absolute  destruction;  yet  the  storm  being 
past,  it  recovers  fresh  verdure,  shoots  up  with  double 
vigor,  and  delights  the  eye,  not  of  its  owner  only,  but  of 
every  observing  traveller."* 

Adams  and  Jay  came  over,  to  join  Franklin  in 


*  Franklin,  in  letter  to  Washington  of  March,  1780: 
Vol.  VII,  pp.  26,  27. 


Complete  Works, 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  115 

negotiating  the  peace  with  Britain  of  1782.     They 
brought  instructions  from  Congress  that  nothing  was  pJac^artfcies 
to  be  done  without  consulting  the  French  Minister;  ^S^oth Pi782 
but  insisted,  over  Franklin's  protest,  that  these  in- 
structions must  be  disregarded  and  the  peace  privately 
arranged.     It  was  the  protesting  Franklin  who  had,  „     11#  , 

°  .,..,.  nr»        i     i    Franklin's  part   in 

afterwards,  the  task  of  conciliating  the  justly  offended  the  peace  treaty. 
French  Minister,  Vergennes;  which  he  accomplished 
successfully. 

Franklin  urged  the  other  commissioners  to  demand 
the  cession  of  Canada,  as  over  against  compensation  to  Franklin's  views 

.  .  with   reference  to 

lories.     Adams  and  Jay,  in  the  mood  ol  post-war  Canada. 

hatred,  insisted  that  not  a  dollar  of  damages  should 

be  paid  a  Tory;  and  Franklin  was  over-ruled.    Had 

he  had  his  way,  it  is  likely  Britain  would  have  yielded. 

She  had  possessed  Canada  only  since  the  French  and 

Indian  War ;  and  it  was  Franklin  who,  at  the  close  of 

that  War,  had  urged  the  British  statesmen  to  ask  the 

cession   of    Canada    from   France,   rather   than   the 

Guadeloupe  Islands.  Canada  was  still  largely  French  Wh    Canada 

in  population,  and  its  value  not  yet  appreciated  in  remained  a  British 

.      .  .  .  J  Jr.  .       possession. 

Britain.  Thus,  if  Franklin  had  had  his  way,  it  is 
probable  that  Canada  would  have  been,  from  the  be- 
ginning of  our  nation,  an  integral  part  of  the  United 
States  of  America.  This  is  mentioned  only  to  indicate 
how  far-visioned  a  statesman  Franklin  was. 

Franklin's  departure  from  France,  in  July,  1785, 
was  as  triumphal  as  his  reception  nine  years  before.  Return  to 
The  King  lent  his  royal  litter  to  take  Franklin  to  the  Philadelphia  at 

°  J  seventy-nme. 

sea-coast ;  there  were  throngs  of  cheering  populace  all 


116 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Delegate  to  the 

Constitutional 

Convention. 


Franklin's 
happy   solution 
of  the  worst 
controversy  of 
the   Convention. 


The  characteristic 
closing  witticism 
of  Franklin's 
public  life. 


along  the  route.  He  came  home  to  his  house  on 
Market  Street,  Philadelphia,  to  live  there  surrounded 
by  children  and  grandchildren.  There  was  a  mul- 
berry tree  in  the  back  yard,  under  which  he  could  sit 
and  meditate,  read  or  dream  over  his  full  memories. 

His  days  of  public  service  were  not  over,  however. 
On  his  return,  he  was  made  President  of  the  govern- 
ing Council  of  Pennsylvania,  holding  the  office  for 
three  years.  At  eighty-one,  he  was  chosen  a  member 
of  the  Constitutional  Convention,  which  met,  in  Phil- 
adelphia, in  1787.  He  did  not  attempt  to  speak  from 
the  floor,  but  wrote  his  speeches,  and  they  were  read 
by  his  Pennsylvania  colleague ;  and  are  thus  the  only 
ones,  of  the  Convention,  which  have  come  down  to  us 
just  as  given.  It  was,  moreover,  Franklin,  always  the 
conciliator,  who  settled  the  worst  controversy  of  the 
wrangling  Convention.  The  small  States  feared  be- 
ing swamped  by  the  larger  ones,  if  they  went  into  an 
indissoluble  Union.  It  was  Franklin  who  suggested 
that,  in  the  House,  representation  should  be  by  popu- 
lation, and  in  the  Senate,  by  States;  and  that  is  why, 
to  this  day,  little  Delaware,  Rhode  Island  or  Mary- 
land has  its  two  Senators,  side  by  side  with  great  New 
York,  Pennsylvania  or  Illinois. 

Behind  the  Presiding  Officer  of  the  Convention, 
Washington,  was  a  picture  of  the  sun.  When  the  long 
Convention  drew  to  its  end,  Franklin  turned  to  a 
colleague,  and  said  that  he  had  always  been  puzzled 
by  that  picture  of  the  sun,  not  knowing  whether  it 
was  the  rising  or  the  setting  sun;  but  now  that  the 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  117 

Constitution  was  adopted  and  signed,  he  was  sure  it 
was  the  Rising  Sun  of  the  nation's  future.  With  this 
happy  and  pregnant  witticism,  Franklin's  public  life 
appropriately  closes.  He  lingered  on,  for  a  few  years 
of  failing  health,  afflicted  by  a  complication  of  dis- 
eases, and  died,  April  17th,  1790,  eighty-four  years  Death  at  the  age 
old.  °   "g   y"°Ur' 

Of  vigorous  and  enduring  physical  constitution  and 
strong  natural  passions,  entirely  self  educated  and 
self  made,  most  many-sided  in  ceaseless  activities,  sci-  Franklin. 
entist,  moralist,  journalist,  business  man,  inventor, 
humorist  and  philosopher,  the  greatest  diplomat 
America  has  so  far  produced,  schoolmaster  of  the 
colonists,  establishing  the  type  of  virtue  that  has  char- 
acterized us  ever  since,  in  ideal  if  not  in  conduct, 
Franklin  is  one  of  the  most  picturesque  figures  in  our 
history  and,  in  virtues  and  faults,  the  type,  for  all 
time,  of  the  Practical  American:  one  of  the  really 
great  men  in  all  our  past. 


Ill 


Significance  of 
Jefferson  and 
Hamilton  in  our 
history. 


I 


nies. 


JEFFERSON:  THE  DEMOCRATIC 
AMERICAN 

N   WASHINGTON    and   Franklin,   we   have 
studied  the  great  struggle  for  independence,  and 
the  making  of  a  nation  out  of  the  scattered  colo- 
In  Jefferson  and  Hamilton,  we  turn  to  leaders 
of  high  importance   in  the   Revolution,   but  whose 
careers  culminated  in  the  first  phases  of  development 
of  the  new  Government,  and  in  whom  came  the  initial 
cleavage  of  political  philosophy,  which  was  to  divide 
the  Nation  for  more  than  a  half-century  and  cul- 
minate in  the  Civil  War. 

Born  at  Shadwell,  Albemarle  County,  Virginia, 
April  13th,  1743,  Jefferson  was  eleven  years  younger 
than  Washington,  and  thirty-seven  years  jyounger 
than  Franklin,  who  was,  indeed,  the  patriarch  of  the 
Revolution.  On  his  father's  side,  Jefferson  was  of 
Welsh  descent.  According  to  the  tradition  Jefferson 
gives  in  his  fragmentary  Autobiography ,  the  an- 
cestor came  from  near  Mt.  Snowdon,  in  Wales,  in 
the  earliest  days  of  the  Virginia  Colony.  Jefferson's 
liberal  convictions  father,  Peter  Jefferson,  surveyor,  engineer,  burgess, 
father.6  was  a  man  of  great  energy  and  remarkable  stature  and 

strength.  The  tradition  was  that  he  could  lift  a  hogs- 
head of  tobacco,  with  each  hand,  at  the  same  time, 

118 


Ancestry  of 
Jefferson. 


The  forceful 
personality  and 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  119 

while  other  men  found  it  difficult  to  lift  one  with  both 
hands.  He  was  a  liberal  in  politics  and  religion,  in 
contrast  to  his  aristocratic  neighbors;  and  with  lim- 
ited schooling,  had  read  thoughtfully  and  somewhat 
widely.  Though  dying  when  his  son,  Thomas,  was  a 
boy  of  fourteen,  the  son's  intellectual  development 
was  so  precocious  that  he  was  already  deeply  influ-  fa^r™  Vinfons 
enced  by  his  father's  opinions.  Through  life,  he  re-  on  Jefferson, 
tained  deep  reverence  for  his  father's  memory;  and 
his  father  was  the  first  strong  influence,  determining 
Jefferson's  life-long  liberalism  in  politics  and  religion. 

Peter  Jefferson  went  West  from  the  more  settled  Peter  Jefferson's 

.    .  ,  Tin*  «ii  estate    on    the 

portion  of  Virginia,  a  hundred  miles  into  the  wilder-  Rivanna. 
ness,  bought  a  thousand  acres  of  land,  on  the  banks 
of  the  Rivanna,  and  built  himself  a  temporary  cabin. 
He  returned  and  married  Jane  Randolph,  of  the  great 
Scotch  Randolph  family,  that  had  become  eminent 
and  powerful  in  Virginia;  and  took  his  bride  west,   Jefferson's 
to  his  new  home.    There  was  no  site  on  his  thousand 
acres,  which  he  considered  entirely  satisfactory  for  a 
permanent  dwelling ;  so  he  bought  one  from  his  dear- 
est friend  and  nearest  neighbor,  William  Randolph, 
for  "the  largest  bowl  of  punch";  and  on  it  erected  the 
home  he  called  Shadwell.     It  was  here  Thomas  Jef-  shadweii. 
ferson  was  born:  the  third  child  and  first  son  of  his 
father. 

Jefferson  differed  from  others  of  our  great  states-  Jefferson's 

.  i        t  tt  thorough  school- 

men   in    having    an    excellent    schooling.    He    was  rag.   Entering 

thoroughly  prepared  for  college ;  and  entered  William  Maryacoiiege 

and  Mary,  at  the  Colonial  Capital,  Williamsburg,  at  at  seventeen- 


120  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

the  age  of  seventeen.    A  natural  student  and  scholar, 

and€nf<f-iong  eager  ne  seems  to  have  been  equally  proficient  in  mathe- 

wideiy\uitwatedg  ma^cs' tne  languages,  ancient  and  modern,  and  in  the 

natural  sciences ;  and  continued  his  studies  in  all  three 

fields,  throughout  his  life. 

Williamsburg  was  then  a  small  town,  perhaps  a 
thousand  inhabitants,  with  unpaved  streets,  a  dozen 
gentlemen's  estates  scattered  through  the  country- 
side ;  but  it  was  a  remarkable  cultural  center,  neverthe- 

Life  and  less.    The  chief  college  building  and  the  Capital  build- 

associations    at  .  Ill  I  11  <~t  •  S^l       •     ,  1  TTT 

Williamsburg,  the  mg  had   been  designed   by   Sir   Christopher  Wren, 
colonial  capital.    architect  of  St#  paul>s  in  London.    It  is  noteworthy, 

what  a  list  of  eminent  leaders  has  come  from  that  little 
college:  members  of  the  Revolutionary  Committees, 
of  the  Continental  Congress,  Presidents  of  the  United 
States,  Judges  of  the  first  Courts. 

Jefferson's  remarkable  early  development  is  evident 
in  the  fact  that  he  was  welcomed  as  the  fourth  in  an 
unusual  group  of  men,  who  dined  together  two  or 
three  times  a  week.  The  leader  was  the  worldly  and 
cultivated  Governor,  Fauquier.  The  others  were 
Wythe,  leader  of  the  Virginia  Bar,  and  Dr.  Small, 
the  chief  liberal  scholar  in  Virginia,  and  the  second 
great  influence  in  liberalizing  Jefferson's  opinions. 
That  these  eminent  men  welcomed  the  young  collegian 
as  dinner  companion  is  a  signal  tribute  to  Jefferson's 
cultivation  and  conversation.  At  this  time,  Jefferson 
Was  rather  a  dandy  in  dress,  and  a  lover  of  fine  riding 
horses,  which  he  had  kept  with  scrupulous  cleanness. 

Of  Dr.  Small's  influence  upon  him,  Jefferson  says: 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON 


121 


Jefferson's 
statement  of 
Dr.    Small's 
influence  upon 
him. 


"Dr.  William  Small  of  Scotland,  was  then  Professor 
of  Mathematics,  a  man  profound  in  most  of  the  useful 
branches  of  science,  with  a  happy  talent  of  communica- 
tion, correct  and  gentlemanly  manners,  and  an  enlarged 
and  liberal  mind.  He,  most  happily  for  me,  became  soon 
attached  to  me,  and  made  me  his  daily  companion  when 
not  engaged  in  the  school ;  and  from  his  conversation  I 
got  my  first  views  of  the  expansion  of  science,  and  of 
the  system  of  things  in  which  we  are  placed.  Fortu- 
nately, the  philosophical  chair  became  vacant  soon  after 
my  arrival  at  college,  and  he  was  appointed  to  fill  it 
per  interim:  and  he  was  the  first  who  ever  gave,  in  that 
college,  regular  lectures  in  Ethics,  Rhetoric  and  Belles 
Lettres.  He  returned  to  Europe  in  1762,  having  previ- 
ously filled  up  the  measure  of  his  goodness  to  me,  by  pro- 
curing for  me,  from  his  most  intimate  friend,  George 
Wythe,  a  reception  as  a  student  of  law,  under  his  direc- 
tion, and  introduced  me  to  the  acquaintance  and  famil- 
iar table  of  Governor  Fauquier,  the  ablest  man  who  had 
ever  filled  that  office."* 

Leaving  college  at  nineteen,  Jefferson  spent  five 
years  studying  law  with  Wythe,  the  above  mentioned  studying  law. 
leading  lawyer  in  Virginia;  and  at  twenty-four,  was 
admitted  to  practice.  He  was  immediately  successful. 
During  his  first  year  he  had  sixty-eight  cases:  an  al- 
most unequalled  record  for  a  young  lawyer.  The  point 
is,  the  Virginia  aristocrats  were  in  constant  litigation 
over  land  and  boundaries ;  and  Jefferson  seems  to  have 
been  the  favorite  young  lawyer,  to  whom  they  gave 
their  cases.  He  was  wholly  an  office  lawyer:  a  defect 
in  the  throat  prevented  his  ever  speaking  in  public, 


*  Jefferson,  Autobiography :    Writings,  Vol.  I,  pp.  3,  4, 


122 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  successful 
seven  years  of 
law  practice. 


Service  as 
Burgess. 


Summary  of 
the  Rights  of 
America. 


even  in  a  Court  room.  This  should  be  remembered, 
with  reference  to  his  later  career.  During  his  seven 
years  of  law  practice,  Jefferson  practically  doubled 
his  large  inherited  property;  and  he  was  now  one  of 
the  richest  young  men  in  Virginia.  At  thirty- two, 
Jefferson  transferred  his  remaining  cases  to  his  friend, 
Edmund  Randolph,  to  serve  in  the  activities  of  the 
Revolution,  and  never  practised  law  again. 

Meantime,  from  1769  to  1774,  he  had  served  every 
year  as  burgess,  together  with  Washington.  In  1774, 
he  was  elected  to  the  Convention  to  plan  the  union  of 
the  Colonies ;  and  sent  a  series  of  resolutions.  These 
were  not  adopted,  as  they  were  in  advance  of  public 
opinion  of  the  time,  but  were  printed  in  a  pamphlet, 
entitled  A  Summary  View  of  the  Rights  of  America, 
and  widely  read  throughout  the  Colonies.  That  pam- 
phlet makes  interesting  reading  today.  In  it,  Jef- 
ferson held  that  the  British  colonization  of  America 
was  exactly  parallel  to  the  Saxon  settlement  of  Eng- 
land: Franklin's  idea  in  his  Edict  of  the  King  of 
Prussia.  Of  the  American  colonists  he  said,  "For 
themselves  they  fought,  for  themselves  they  con- 
quered, and  for  themselves  alone  they  have  the  right 
to  hold."  He  denied  all  right  on  the  part  of  Britain 
to  restrict  the  trade  and  manufactures  of  the  Colonies, 
and  claimed  for  them  entire  freedom  of  self-govern- 
ment. You  will  recognize  that  these  principles,  while 
in  advance  of  the  hour,  were  just  those,  for  which  the 
colonists  fought  through  the  Revolution;  evidencing 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  123 

how    far-visioned    Jefferson    was,    as    political    phi- 
losopher. 

It  was  during  his  period  of  law  practice,  at  Wil- 
liamsburg, that  Jefferson's  personal  life  was  perma-  Jefferson's 
nently  established.  Like  Washington,  Jefferson  had  Sarth^skliton 
early  shown  a  warm  interest  in  the  opposite  sex. 
There  had  been  a  number  of  youthful  love  affairs.  At 
Williamsburg,  however,  one  of  Jefferson's  legal  asso- 
ciates was  John  Wayles,  possessed  of  a  very  beautiful 
estate,  on  the  edge  of  town,  "The  Forest",  and,  more 
important,  of  a  lovely  daughter,  a  young  widow  with- 
out children,  Martha  Skelton,  belle  of  the  neighbor- 
hood, well  educated,  accomplished  in  music.  Jefferson, 
all  his  life,  was  a  lover  of  music.  Early,  he  procured  an 
unusual  violin,  under  peculiar  circumstances,  carried  it 
everywhere  with  him — to  Paris,  to  the  Capital,  as 
President — and  played  upon  it,  to  his  own  satisfac- 
tion. Well,  there  were  duets  at  the  Forest;  from  the 
musical  companionship,  there  developed  a  warm,  ten- 
der love  relationship ;  and  on  New  Year's  Day,  1772, 
as  Jefferson  approached  the  age  of  twenty-nine,  he 
and  Martha  Skelton  were  married.  She  was  then 
twenty- three  years  old.  A  few  days  later,  he  started 
with  his  bride,  on  the  hundred  mile  drive  to  "Monti- 
cello",  the  home  he  had  begun  building  two  years 
before. 

Monticello — little  mountain — as  the  Italian  name 
indicates,  rises,  an  almost  perfect  cone,  about  six  hun-  Monticello. 
dred  feet  above  the  surrounding  countryside,  sloping 
down  to  the  banks  of  the  Rivanna,  with  marvellous 


124 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  mansion. 
Jefferson,  his 
own  architect. 


Monticello,  a 
world  in  itself. 


views,  over  the  rolling  hills,  to  the  majestic  line  of  the 
Blue  Ridge.  On  the  summit  of  the  little  mountain, 
Jefferson  had  his  mansion  half-erected;  living  with 
his  bride,  for  a  time,  in  a  small  brick  building,  after- 
wards part  of  the  slave  quarters ;  and  then  moving  into 
the  still  unfinished  great  house.  It  was,  indeed,  thirty- 
two  years,  from  its  beginning,  before  Monticello  was 
finally  completed. 

Jefferson  was  his  own  architect.  A  devoted  student 
of  architecture  and  lover  of  the  Classic  type,  he 
planned  the  stately  home  on  Greek  lines.  The  Por- 
tico rose  the  full  height  of  the  structure,  with  majestic 
Doric  columns.  The  west  rooms  also  rose  to  the 
roof;  but  in  the  interior,  Jefferson  used  the  lighter 
and  more  graceful  Ionic  style.  It  was  the  finest  man- 
sion in  that  part  of  Virginia,  and  in  majestic  simplic- 
ity and  dignity,  one  of  the  most  satisfying  dwellings 
ever  erected  on  American  soil.  Here  Jefferson  enter- 
tained, with  more  than  the  generous  Southern  hos- 
pitality. The  dinners  and  wines  of  Monticello  were 
famous. 

Even  more  than  Mount  Vernon  under  Washing- 
ton, Monticello  was  a  little  world  in  itself.  It  had  to 
be,  for  it  was  further  away  from  the  more  settled  por- 
tion of  Virginia.  Jefferson  was  opposed  to  slavery, 
more  bitterly  even  than  Washington.  There  are  many 
passages,  in  his  various  writings,  expressing  his  view 
of  the  institution.  The  following  is  a  typical  para- 
graph, from  the  Notes  on  Virginia : 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON 


125 


"There  must  doubtless  be  an  unhappy  influence  on  the 
manners  of  our  people  produced  by  the  existence  of  slav- 
ery among  us.  The  whole  commerce  between  master 
and  slave  is  a  perpetual  exercise  of  the  most  boisterous 
passions,  and  most  unremitting  despotism  on  the  one 
part,  and  degrading  submission  on  the  other.  Our  chil- 
dren see  this  and  learn  to  imitate  it.  *  *  *  With  the 
morals  of  the  people,  their  industry  also  is  destroyed. 
For  in  a  warm  climate,  no  man  will  labor  for  himself 
who  can  make  another  labor  for  him.  This  is  so  true, 
that  of  the  proprietors  of  slaves  a  very  small  propor- 
tion indeed  are  ever  seen  to  labor.  And  can  the  liberties 
of  a  nation  be  thought  secure  when  we  have  removed 
their  only  firm  basis,  a  conviction  in  the  minds  of  the 
people  that  these  liberties  are  of  the  gift  of  God?  that 
they  are  not  to  be  violated  but  with  his  wrath?  Indeed, 
I  tremble  for  my  country  when  I  reflect  that  God  is 
just;   that  his  justice  cannot  sleep  forever."* 

With  that  attitude  toward  it,  Jefferson,  like  Wash- 
ington and  other  intelligent  men  born  into  the  insti- 
tution of  slavery,  accepted  it  and  did  the  best  he  could 
with  it.  Among  his  slaves,  were  artisans  of  all  kinds. 
The  bricks  for  Monticello  were  made  on  the  estate. 
The  nails  for  the  mansion  were  wrought  by  slaves: 
indeed,  the  sale  of  wrought  nails  was  one  of  the 
sources  of  income  for  the  estate. 

At  the  time  of  his  marriage,  Jefferson  had  about 
five  thousand  acres  of  land.  The  death  of  his  wife's 
father,  the  following  year,  brought  him  forty  thou- 
sand more  acres  and  a  hundred  and  thirty-five  more 
slaves.    This  again  practically  doubled  his  property. 


Jefferson's  views 
of  slavery. 


The  only  fault 
in  limiting  the 
statement  to  a 
warm   climate! 


No  Abolitionist 
ever   stated   the 
case   more 
impressively. 


Life  at 
Monticello. 


The  large 
inheritance   from 
John  Wayles  and 
its   consequences. 


*  Jefferson,  Notes  on  Virginia:     Writings,  Vol.  II,  pp.  225-227. 


126 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Character  of 
Jefferson  as 
husband  and 
father. 


In  his  father-in-law's  lands  was  the  Natural  Bridge 
of  Virginia,  about  eighty  miles  from  Monticello.  Jef- 
ferson loved  that  beautiful  phenomenon;  dreamed  of 
building  a  hermitage  there,  where  he  could  retire,  for 
study  and  meditation ;  but  that  plan  was  never  carried 
out. 

This  inheritance  from  his  wife's  father  was  not  an 
unmixed  blessing,  for  the  lands  were  heavily  mort- 
gaged; and  in  the  end  Jefferson  paid  the  mortgage 
practically  three  times  over:  having  to  pay  it  with 
British  gold  in  London,  and  collect  the  money  in  the 
depreciating  Continental  currency.  This  was  one  of 
the  causes  of  the  collapse  of  Jefferson's  financial  for- 
tunes, later  on. 

Jefferson's  marriage,  the  result  of  a  warm  and  ten- 
der love-affair,  remained  a  beautiful  love-affair 
through  the  ten  years  of  his  wife's  life.  He  was  a 
devoted  husband  and  a  tender  father  to  his  children. 
There  were  six,  only  two  daughters  surviving  in- 
fancy. These  two  grew  to  maturity  and  married ;  the 
younger  dying  early,  while  the  elder  lived  through  a 
long  life-time  and  was  the  mother  of  eleven  children. 
Jefferson's  letters  to  his  daughters  are  tender  in  af- 
fection and  wise  in  kindly  counsel.  It  is  interesting 
that  the  democratic  Jefferson  was  anxious,  above  all, 
that  his  daughters  should  have  the  manners  of  culti- 
vated gentlewomen. 

The  tradition  is  that  when  Jefferson's  wife  was 
dying,  in  September,  1782,  she  held  up  her  fingers  to 
the  number  of  the  children  she  was  leaving  behind, 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON     -  127 

and  said  she  could  not  bear  to  think  of  any  other 

woman  being  the  mother  of  her  children.     Jefferson  kept  promise 7to 

promised  his  dying  wife  that  he  would  never  marry  the  dying  Wlfe" 

again;  and  kept  the  promise  faithfully  to  the  end. 

There  may  have  been  other  love-affairs — apparently 

there  were — but  he  never  married  again. 

It  is  interesting  that  Jefferson  was  not  the  success- 
ful farmer  and  business  man  that  Washington  was,    _  a 

°  t        Jefferson  as 

although  he  gave  equally  careful  attention  to  details  farmer  and 
of  management.  It  is  true  that  the  ravaging  of  his 
estates  during  the  Revolution  and  the  multiplied 
paying  of  his  father-in-law's  mortgage  contributed  to 
the  later  collapse  of  Jefferson's  financial  fortunes; 
and  then,  through  his  wife's  early  death,  there  was  no 
Martha  to  supervise  the  estate  during  the  long  peri- 
ods of  absence,  as  in  Washington's  case.  Beyond  all 
this,  however,  it  must  be  admitted  that  Jefferson  did 

,  .  1  Contrast  with 

not  nave  the  practical  business  success  of  Washington.  Washington. 
Was  it  that  Jefferson  was  more  the  idealist,  dreamer, 
experimenter,  without  that  consistent  grasp  of  objec- 
tive facts,  of  things  as  they  are,  that  was  the  dominant 
characteristic  of  Washington's  mind?  Jefferson  in- 
troduced new  varieties  of  plants,  sending  the  seeds 
widely  through  the  Southern  Colonies.  He  imported 
improved  breeds  of  domestic  animals.  He  sought  to 
develop  olive  culture  and  improved  rice  culture,  in   Progressive 

,       0         .         XT.  .  .  measures    in 

the  south.    He  carried  out  rotation  of  crops:  a  great   agriculture. 
advance  in  farming,  at  that  time.     In  it  all,  he  was 
the  progressive  experimenter,  in  the  interest  of  the 


128 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Jefferson  taking 
his  seat  in  the 
second  Continental 
Congress,  June 
21st,   1775. 


Drafting  the 
answers,  both 
of  Virginia  and 
of  the  Congress, 
to  Lord  North's 
Propositions. 


Virginia's 
Resolutions   of 
Independence. 


Jefferson 
appointed  to 
draft  the 
Declaration  of 
Independence. 


general  welfare,  rather  than  the  consistently  success- 
ful business  man. 

Jefferson  was  a  member  of  the  Convention  at  Rich- 
mond, to  choose  delegates  to  the  second  Continental 
Congress.  He  heard  Patrick  Henry's  most  eloquent 
speech;  and  was  chosen  an  alternate  delegate  to  the 
Congress.  As  the  one  he  was  to  replace  could  not 
serve,  Jefferson  was  sent  to  the  Congress.  He  had 
drawn  up  the  Virginia  answer  to  Lord  North's  Prop- 
ositions, and  took  it  with  him  to  the  Continental  Con- 
gress, which  approved  it.  Though  there  were  but  two 
members  of  the  Congress  younger  than  Jefferson,  he 
was  asked  to  prepare  the  reply  of  the  Congress  to  the 
Propositions;  which  means  that  his  remarkable  liter- 
ary gift  was  already  widely  recognized. 

In  May,  1776,  the  Virginia  Assembly  passed  reso- 
lutions of  independence,  and  sent  a  copy  of  them,  by 
Richard  Henry  Lee,  to  the  Continental  Congress, 
with  the  request  that  Congress  take  similar  action. 
After  extended  debate,  the  Virginia  motion  carried; 
and  Jefferson  was  appointed  on  the  Committee  to 
prepare  the  Declaration.  The  other  members  of  the 
Committee  requested  Jefferson  to  draft  it;  and  he 
did  so,  spending  eighteen  days  at  the  task.  His  draft, 
approved  by  the  members  of  the  Committee,  was  bit- 
terly attacked  from  some  quarters  in  the  Congress; 
but  with  the  elision  of  some  passages,  and  a  few 
changes,  mostly  improvements,  it  was  accepted  by  the 
Congress,  substantially  as  written  by  Jefferson,  and 
signed  by  the  delegates,  on  the  late  afternoon  of  July 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  129 

4th,   1776.     It  was  read  publicly  in  Independence 
Square,  Philadelphia,  at  noon,  on  July  8th.     That   ^K**? 
evening,  the  King's  Coat  of  Arms  was  brought  from  ^ong^esbs'  ?}nd 
the  State  apartments  and  publicly  burned.     There   delegates,  July 
were  similar  scenes  throughout  the  colonies,  the  Dec-   launching  the 
laration  really  launching  the  Revolution.  evo  u  lon' 

Jefferson  thus  became  the  author  of  the  Nation's 
birthright,  the  charter  of  our  liberties.  Lincoln  loved 
to  call  it,  "The  White  Man's  Charter  of  Freedom", 
using  the  phrase  until  it  became  a  political  campaign 
cry.  To  get  more  fully  Lincoln's  view  of  the  Declara- 
tion, note  the  passage  in  his  letter  to  the  Boston  Com- 
mittee, inviting  him  to  the  celebration  of  Jefferson's 
birthday  in  1859: 

"All  honor  to  Jefferson — to  the  man  who,  in  the  con- 
crete pressure  of  a  struggle  for  national  independence 
by  a  single  people,  had  the  coolness,  forecast,  and  ca-  ^sfgnificanTe  °of 
pacity  to  introduce  into  a  mere  revolutionary  document  the  Declaration, 
an  abstract  truth,  applicable  to  all  men  and  all  times, 
and  so  to  embalm  it  there  that  today  and  in  all  coming 
days  it  shall  be  a  rebuke  and  a  stumbling-block  to  the 
very  harbingers  of  reappearing  tyranny  and  oppres- 
sion."* 

Such  was  Lincoln's  view  of  the  Declaration  of  In- 
dependence, as  written  by  Thomas  Jefferson,  stated 
during  the  year  between  Lincoln's  candidacy  for  the 
Senate  and  his  election  to  the  Presidency,  under  the 
auspices  of  the  political  party  born  to  fight  the  party 
founded  by  Thomas  Jefferson. 


*  Lincoln,  in  Letter  to  the  Boston  Committee,  Springfield,  Ills.,  April 
6th,  1859:     Writings  Vol.  V,  p.  26. 


130  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

In  the  campaign  of  1854,  in  his  speech  at  Peoria, 

Lincoln  regarding  i    •  ■       o  j_        r\  i         t  •         111        •  l 

Jefferson  as  our     replying  to  Senator  Douglas,  .Lincoln  had  said: 

Tlitic1atilwdCThed  "Mr*  Jefferson~ the  author  of  the  Declaration  of  In- 

dependence, and  otherwise  a  chief  factor  in  the  Revolu- 
tion—  .  .  .  who  was,  is,  and  perhaps  will  continue  to 
be,  the  most  distinguished  politician  of  our  history."  * 

Lincoln's  words  on  the  Declaration  are  worth  pon- 
dering today,  when  so  many  half-formed  scholars 
significance  of  patronizingly  dispose  of  the  Declaration  as  a  "tissue 
Americaaneiib°erties.  of  glittering  generalities."  Rightly  understood,  that 
is  just  what  it  is:  a  fabric  of  resplendent  general 
ideas — 1the  only  basis  on  which  men  can  widely  unite. 
They  can  never  agree  on  questions  of  special  policy. 
It  is  only  such  a  program  of  large,  permanently  true 
general  conceptions  that  furnishes  a  sound  basis  of 
union.    Exactly  the  same  criticism  was  made  on  Presi- 

FoSteln*  WilBon,s  dent  wilson's  famous  Fourteen  Points;    and  they 

Points  as  had  just  the  same  excellence,  formulating  a  program 

same  c?iticism       of  shining  general  ideas,   on  which  the   struggling 

the  sameng  nations  could  unite.    Indeed,  it  is  because  President 

thCelD  d%at'         Wilson  was  so  faithful  to  the  great  ideas  of  Thomas 

Jefferson,   and   applied  them  with   such  wisdom  to 

international  relations,  that  History  will  doubtless 

regard  him  as  the  outstanding  American  president 

since  Lincoln. 

If  Jefferson  had  done  nothing  else  than  write  the 
Declaration  of  Independence,  his  fame  would  have 
been  sufficiently  established  as  the  philosopher  .of 
democracy. 

*  Lincoln,  in  speech  at  Peoria,  Ills.,  Oct.  16th,  1854:     Writings,  Vol. 
II,  p.  180. 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  131 

In  October,  1776,  Jefferson  was  appointed,  with 
Franklin  and  Silas  Deane,  as  Commissioner  to  go  to 
France  and  seek  to  bring  France  in  on  the  American 
side.    Because  of  his  wife's  illness,  Jefferson  declined  Jefferson's 
the  appointment  and  went  home  to  Virginia,  where  f^theTeVislon 
he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Virginia  Legislature  e*  *hf  Virginia 
and  appointed  at  the  head  of  a  Committee  to  revise 
the  Virginia  statutes.     As  an  independent  common- 
wealth, Virginia  wished  to  reform  its  whole  body  of 
legislation  and  take  a  fresh  start.    The  other  members 
of  the  Committee  did  little  work,  so  that  the  revision 
was  the  labor  of  Jefferson.     He  had  previously  col- 
lected the  colonial  statutes,  during  the  period  of  his 
law  practice,  and  many  of  them  had  survived  only 
because  of  this. 

This  work  of  Jefferson's  was  far  more  important 
than  easily  appears.  Virginia  was  burdened  with  a 
mass  of  ill  advised  legislation:  some  of  it  atrocious  in 
in  character;   other  parts  lifted  over  from  England.  „,.   .    ±. 

r  to  Eliminating 

She  had,  for  instance,  taken  over  the  British  laws  on  laws  on 
primogeniture  and  entail,  with  the  result  that  a  power-  and  entail. 
ful  landed  aristocracy  was  rapidly  growing  up  in 
Virginia,  similar  to  that  in  England.  Jefferson's 
first  aim  was  to  eliminate  this  whole  body  of  legis- 
lation fostering  aristocracy,  and  substitute  the  princi- 
ple of  division  of  estates  among  all  the  children  of 
a  family  in  each  generation.  This  was  carried  the 
same  year,  1776,  with  the  result  of  stopping  largely 
the  growth  of  a  landed  aristocracy  in  Virginia,  but 


132 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Glaring  injustice 
and  oppression 
of  the 

Colonial    laws 
on  religion. 


with  the  further  consequence  that  Jefferson  had  the 
life-long  hatred  of  many  of  the  aristocrats. 

Still  more  important  was  Jefferson's  work  in  rela- 
tion to  the  Virginia  laws  on  religion.  It  is  difficult 
for  anyone,  not  intimately  familiar  with  colonial 
history,  to  realize  how  atrocious  many  of  those  laws 
were.  Virginia,  so  largely  settled  by  British  aristo- 
crats, had  taken  over  the  established  Church  of 
England,  and  given  it  even  more  arbitrary  authority 
in  the  Colony.  All  persons,  whatever  their  faith,  were 
compelled  to  pay  tithes  to  the  established  Church. 
Baptists,  Methodists,  Quakers,  Presbyterians  were 
forbidden  to  teach  school  or  hold  religious  services,  on 
penalty  of  arrest  and  fine.  Roman  Catholics  could 
not  teach  school,  hold  religious  services,  own  a  horse, 
carry  a  gun  or  give  testimony  in  a  court  of  law.  Cele- 
bration of  the  Mass  was  punishable  by  death.  It  was 
a  felony  to  deny  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity.  A  father 
could  be  legally  deprived  of  his  children,  if  he  did  not 
accept  the  tenets  of  the  Church  of  England.  For 
treating  a  Church  of  England  clergyman  with  dis- 
respect (and  under  their  habit  of  life  in  Virginia, 
some  of  them  perhaps  deserved  such  treatment)  the 
offender  was  publicly  whipped  and  compelled  to  ask 
pardon  in  Church  on  three  successive  Sundays.  For 
failure  to  attend  the  exposition  of  the  Catechism,  one 
was  fined  a  week's  provisions;  for  a  second  offense, 
the  same  and  whipping ;  for  a  third  offense,  these  two 
punishments  and  imprisonment.  All  persons  were 
required  to  give  an  account  of  their  faith  to  the  Church 


What  is  good 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  133 

of  England  Clergyman.  If  they  refused,  they  were 
publicly  whipped.  For  a  second  refusal,  the  same 
and  public  acknowledgement  in  Church.  For  a  third 
refusal,  one  was  publicly  whipped  every  day  until  one 
did  make  acknowledgement  in  Church. 

Now  please  note  that  you  cannot  make  a  bad  law 
respectable  by  enacting  it.  This  is  emphasized  because 
there  is  a  fraction  of  our  population,  rather  noisy  at 
present,  insisting  that,  the  moment  a  law  gets  on  the 
statute  books,  it  thereby  becomes  venerable,  and  de-  citizenship  in 
mands  the  respect  as  well  as  obedience  of  every  citizen,  unjust  laws  ? 
That  is  distinctly  not  true.  It  is  just  as  much  the 
duty  of  good  citizenship  to  protest  against  unjust  laws 
and  seek  to  have  them  abrogated,  as  it  is  to  respect 
and  obey  just  laws.  The  chief  advantage  of  enforc- 
ing a  bad  law  is  to  arouse  public  opinion  to  its  swift 
elimination.  A  law  may  be  so  bad  that  it  is  well 
that  it  is  not  regularly  enforced.  It  was  a  good 
thing  that  these  atrocious  statutes  on  religion  were 
not  always  enforced  in  colonial  Virginia.  For  in- 
stance, was  it  not  well  that  George  Washington,  who 
was  a  liberal  in  religion,  and  of  whom  the  Church  of 
England  clergyman  frequently  complained  to  Mrs. 
Washington,  because  of  his  neglect  of  certain  of  the 
above  observances,  was  not  publicly  whipped  every 
day,  for  failing  to  give  an  account  of  his  conscience 
to  the  Church  of  England  clergyman? 

Jefferson  fought  for  the  elimination  of  this  whole 
mass   of  wicked   legislation.      The   fight   lasted   ten  s^cesahii  &ght 
years.     At  the  end  of  that  time,  Jefferson's  friends 


134 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  great 
Statute  on 
Religious 
Freedom. 


Jefferson,  the 
Father  of 
American 
religious  freedom. 


in  the  legislature  secured  the  repeal  of  all  the  old 
laws  on  religion,  and  the  substitution  of  Jefferson's 
great  statute  on  religious  freedom.  It  is  so  brief  that 
the  whole  main  item  may  be  quoted : 

"Be  it  therefore  enacted  by  the  General  Assembly , 
That  no  man  shall  be  compelled  to  frequent  or  support 
any  religious  worship,  place  or  ministry  whatsoever,  nor 
shall  be  enforced,  restrained,  molested,  or  burthened  in 
his  body  or  goods,  nor  shall  otherwise  suffer  on  account 
of  his  religious  opinions  or  belief ;  but  that  all  men  shall 
be  free  to  profess,  and  by  argument  to  maintain,  their 
opinions  in  matters  of  religion,  and  that  the  same  shall 
in  no  wise  diminish,  enlarge,  or  affect  their  civil  capaci- 
ties."* 

This  was  not  the  earliest  statute  on  religious  free- 
dom in  America;  but  it  is  one  of  the  simplest  and 
noblest ;  and  the  great  personal  prestige  of  Jefferson 
made  it  peculiarly  influential  in  the  national  councils. 
That  we  have  a  similar  guaranty,  in  those  first  great 
amendments  to  the  Constitution,  is  due  in  large 
measure  to  the  influence  of  Jefferson.  He  thus  de- 
serves, more  than  any  other  individual,  to  be  called 
the  Father  of  American  religious  liberty,  of  that 
permanent  separation  of  the  State  from  all  Church 
establishments,  with  untrammeled  freedom  of  belief, 
speech  and  worship,  guaranteed  in  the  Nation's 
charter. 

Today,  we  witness  a  wide  recrudescence  of  relig- 
ious and  racial  prejudice  and  intolerance,  with  sinis- 


*  Jefferson,  from  the  Act  for  Establishing  Religious  Freedom,  passed 
by  the  Virginia  Assembly,  1786:     Writings,  Vol.  II,  pp.  302,  303. 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  135 

ter  renewed  attempts  to  suppress  by  prohibitory  leg- 

•  1    ,  •         ,i  ,i  in  j'  •  e  Significance   of 

lslation  the  open  study  and  tree  discussion  of  scien-    jeffersons's 
tific  facts  and  laws,  under  the  absurd  delusion  that   f^p^esent*3 
there  can  be  a  conflict  between  true  religion  and  sci-   d&y  America. 
ence,  which  is  merely  the  faithful  recording  of  real- 
ity.    This  much  may  be  said:  whenever  there  is  a 
conflict  between  science  and  what  calls  itself  religion, 
it  is  never  science  that  passes.     The  anti-evolution 
laws  of  several  States  are  an  ugly  symptom  of  our 
reversion  back  well  toward  the  spirit  of  the  Spanish 
Inquisition.     In  a  time  such  as  this,  surely  Jeffer- 
son's great  liberal  ideas  need  reaffirmation  and  loyal 
following,  as  never  before  in  our  history.     Truly  the 
conduct  of  many  who  call  upon  his  name  and  claim  to 
be  his  followers  is  in  flagrant  violation  of  the  princi- 
ples Jefferson  taught. 

The  third  item  in  Jefferson's  revision  of  the  Vir- 
ginia statutes  was  education.  He  was  one  of  the 
earliest  American  statesmen  to  recognize  the  respon- 
sibility of  the  State  in  the  education  of  the  citizen, 
under  democracy,  and  the  first  to  see  fully  that  re- 
sponsibility. He  planned  a  complete  system  of  state 
education    for    Virginia,    crowned   by    a    university,   program  on 

tti»j.  jij.1*         i  *iii        iit        •        public  education. 

Unfortunately,  this  plan  was  rejected  by  the  Legis- 
lature. The  only  part  of  it  Jefferson  succeeded  in 
fighting  through,  in  his  late  years,  was  the  establish- 
ment of  the  University  of  Virginia. 

The  fourth  item  in  Jefferson's  great  program  was   The  plan  for     , 
the  elimination  of  slavery.     The  plan  was,  with  the   slavery". mg 
stopping  of  further  importation  of  slaves,  to  declare 


136 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Jefferson 
believing   in 
deportation,   as 
well  as 
emancipation. 


Almost  a 
forecast  of 
the  Civil  War! 


The  one  item 
concerning 
slavery    that 
carried. 


free  all  born  after  a  certain  date,  and  deport  them 
at  a  proper  age.  It  is  interesting  that  Jefferson  held 
deportation  to  be  as  necessary  as  emancipation.  His 
own  statement  is: 

"The  principles  of  the  amendment  were  agreed  on, 
that  is  to  say,  the  freedom  of  all  born  after  a  certain 
day,  and  deportation  at  a  proper  age.  But  it  was  found 
that  the  public  mind  would  not  yet  bear  the  proposition, 
nor  will  it  bear  it  even  at  this  day.  Yet  the  day  is  not 
distant  when  it  must  bear  and  adopt  it,  or  worse  will 
follow.  Nothing  is  more  certainly  written  in  the  book 
of  fate,  than  that  these  people  are  to  be  free ;  nor  is  it 
less  certain  that  the  two  races,  equally  free,  cannot  live 
in  the  same  government.  Nature,  habit,  opinion  have 
drawn  indelible  lines  of  distinction  between  them.  It  is 
still  in  our  power  to  direct  the  process  of  emancipation 
and  deportation,  peaceably,  and  in  such  slow  degree,  as 
that  the  evil  will  wear  off  insensibly,  and  their  place  be, 
pari  passu,  filled  up  by  free  white  laborers.  If,  on  the 
contrary,  it  is  left  to  force  itself  on,  human  nature  must 
shudder  at  the  prospect  held  up."* 

It  is  noteworthy  that  Lincoln  agreed  with  his  mas- 
ter, Jefferson,  on  the  wisdom  of  deportation,  as  well 
as  emancipation. 

The  only  element  of  this  plan  which  carried  was 
the  prohibition,  in  1778,  of  the  further  importation 
of  slaves  into  Virginia. 

The  final  feature  of  the  program  was  the  revision 
of  the  penal  system.  The  colonial  laws  contained 
much  that  was  barbarous  and  based  literally  on  the 


Jefferson,  Autobiography .-    Writings,  Vol.   I,  pp.   72,   73. 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON 


137 


"eye  for  an  eye,  and  tooth  for  a  tooth"  principle. 
Jefferson  prepared  a  code,  based  on  the  more  humane 
European  models,  restricting  capital  punishment, 
and  aiming  at  the  reformation  of  the  offender.  The 
gradual  adoption  of  this,  ultimately  eliminated  the 
mass  of  merely  revengeful  laws.  This  reform,  alone, 
justifies  Jefferson's  fame  as  the  philosopher  of  de- 
mocracy. 

Jefferson  summed  up  the  significance  of  his  revi- 
sion of  the  Virginia  laws  in  these  words: 

"I  considered  four  of  these  bills,  passed  or  reported, 
as  forming  a  system  by  which  every  fibre  would  be  eradi- 
cated of  ancient  or  future  aristocracy;  and  a  founda- 
tion laid  for  a  government  truly  republican.  The  repeal 
of  the  laws  of  entail  would  prevent  the  accumulation  and 
perpetuation  of  wealth,  in  select  families,  and  preserve 
the  soil  of  the  country  from  being  daily  more  and  more 
absorbed  in  mort-main.  The  abolition  of  primogeni- 
ture, and  equal  partition  of  inheritances,  removed  the 
feudal  and  unnatural  distinctions  which  made  one  mem- 
ber of  every  f amily  rich,  and  all  the  rest  poor,  substitut- 
ing equal  partition,  the  best  of  all  Agrarian  laws.  The 
restoration  of  the  rights  of  conscience  relieved  the  peo- 
ple from  taxation  for  the  support  of  a  religion  not 
theirs ;  for  the  establishment  was  truly  of  the  religion 
of  the  rich,  the  dissenting  sects  being  entirely  composed 
of  the  less  wealthy  people ;  and  these,  by  the  bill  for  a 
general  education,  would  be  qualified  to  understand 
their  rights,  to  maintain  them,  and  to  exercise  with  in- 
telligence their  parts  in  self-government;  and  all  this 
would  be  effected,  without  the  violation  of  a  single  nat- 
ural right  of  any  one  individual  citizen."* 

*  Jefferson,  Autobiography :    Writings,  Vol.  I,  pp.  73,  74. 


Significance  of 
Jefferson's 
revision    of 
the  penal 
system, 


Jefferson's  own 
view  of  the 
aim  and  value 
of  his  work 
in  revising 
the    Virginia 
statutes. 


The    correlation 
of  different 
elements  in 
Jefferson's 
program   of 
democracy. 


138 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Jefferson's  two 
terms  as 
Governor  of 
Virginia. 


Ravaging  of 
Virginia  by 
the   British. 


The  criticism 
of  Jefferson 
and   its   effect 
upon  him. 


The   Notes 
on    Virginia. 


During  the  darkest  period  of  the  War  for  Inde- 
pendence, Jefferson  served  two  terms  as  Governor 
of  Virginia.  At  this  time,  Virginia  was  overrun  and 
ravished  by  British  troops,  especially  by  those  under 
the  command  of  Benedict  Arnold,  who  behaved  with 
a  cruelty  only  a  traitor  will  show  toward  the  people 
he  has  betrayed.  The  legislature  had  to  flee  from 
Richmond,  which  was  ravaged,  to  Charlottesville,  and 
narrowly  escaped  capture.  Jefferson,  himself,  just 
avoided  capture,  by  fleeing  from  Monticello,  as  the 
British  were  coming  up  the  hill.  The  beautiful  man- 
sion was  fortunately  spared  by  the  British  command- 
er, Tarleton>  but  Jefferson's  other  estates  were  rav- 
aged and  the  buildings  burned;  which  was  a  further 
cause  for  the  later  ruin  of  his  financial  fortunes. 

Jefferson  was  severely  criticized  for  not  having 
taken,  as  Governor,  stronger  and  more  efficient  meas- 
ures for  resisting  the  British  invasion.  The  Legisla- 
ture, in  1782,  passed  a  resolution  exonerating  him; 
but  he  regarded  the  attacks  as  wholly  unjust,  and  his 
bitterness  over  them  lasted  to  the  end  of  his  days. 

It  was  at  this  period  of  his  life  that  Jefferson  wrote 
his  Notes  on  Virginia.  The  book  was  written  pri- 
marily to  inform  one  of  his  friends,  a  French  noble- 
man, of  the  conditions  and  life  in  the  new  world.  Jef- 
ferson modestly  printed  it  in  a  private  edition  of  two 
hundred  copies.  One  of  these  got  translated  into 
garbled  French  and  published  abroad.  To  protect 
himself,  Jefferson  published  a  complete  edition  in 
London.    He  need  not  have  been  so  modest  about  the 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON 


139 


work;  for  it  is  truly  a  great  book.  It  not  only  gave 
a  general  review  of  Virginia,  in  her  then  vast  terri- 
tory, of  the  topography,  mineral  wealth,  fauna  and 
flora,  slaves  and  Indians,  institutions  and  laws,  but 
contains  as  well  much  of  his  social  and  political  phi- 
losophy, with  passages  of  literary  beauty  and  wisdom 
which  are  delightful  reading  today.  Jefferson  col- 
lected and  analyzed  his  material  with  the  instincts 
and  labor  at  once  of  the  scholar,  the  literary  man  and 
the  philosopher.  The  Notes  on  Virginia  did  much 
to  advance  his  fame,  at  home  and  abroad,  and  to  pre- 
pare the  way  for  his  warm  welcome  in  France. 

In  1783,  Jefferson  was  again  a  member  of  the  Con- 
tinental Congress.  He  was  at  the  head  of  the  Com- 
mittee to  consider  the  treaty  of  peace.  His  report 
on  a  Monetary  System  gave  the  basis  for  our  present 
currency,  though  Gouverneur  Morris  first  advocated 
the  decimal  system.  More  important  still  was  Jeffer- 
son's service  in  formulating  the  plan  of  government 
for  the  Northwest  Territory.  Virginia's  claim  to  that 
vast  region  extending  from  the  Ohio  to  Wisconsin, 
and  including  the  present  states  of  Ohio,  Indiana, 
Michigan  and  Illinois,  was  ceded  to  Congress  and 
Jefferson  presented  the  deed.  His  plan  for  govern- 
ment provided  that  slavery  should  cease  in  the  terri- 
tory after  1800.  Defeated  at  first,  this  measure  car- 
ried in  1787;  slavery  being  thus  prohibited  by  law, 
in  the  Northwest  Territory  after  1800;  and  that  made 
Union  victory  possible  in  the  Civil  War.  Jefferson's 
original  bill  further  provided  that  slavery  should  be 


Remarkable 
character  of 
Jefferson's 
work. 


Advancing 
reputation  as 
a  man   of 
letters. 


Services  in 
the  Continental 
Congress  of  1783. 


Significance 
of  Jefferson's 
bill  forbidding 
slavery   in 
the  Northwest 
Territory. 


140 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  happy 
five  years 
in  France, 
1784-1789. 


Jefferson  as 
diplomat. 


Associations 
with  Paris 
society. 


prohibited,  from  the  same  date,  in  the  southwest  ter- 
ritory. This  was  permanently  rejected  by  the  Con- 
gress :  had  it  carried,  there  would  have  been  no  Civil 
War.  This  is  mentioned  to  indicate  how  f ar-visioned 
a  statesman  Jefferson  was,  with  reference  to  the  great- 
est issue  that  was  afterwards  to  divide  the  Nation. 

In  1784,  at  forty-one,  Jefferson  was  again  asked 
to  go  to  France,  as  associate  with  Franklin  and  John 
Adams,  to  negotiate  commercial  treaties  with  Euro- 
pean powers.  His  wife  had  died  in  the  meantime: 
there  was  nothing  now  to  hold  him  to  Monticello, 
and  he  accepted.  After  a  year,  he  was  made  succes- 
sor to  Franklin  as  Minister  to  France.  He  remained 
in  France  five  years,  among  the  happiest  of  his  life. 
He  was  welcomed  with  an  enthusiasm,  second  only  to 
that  accorded  Franklin.  His  fame  as  statesman  had 
preceded  him ;  the  French  had  read  his  Notes  on  Vir- 
ginia. His  wit,  cultivated  conversation,  aristocratic 
manners  and  quick  mastery  of  a  fluent  speaking  of 
the  French  tongue  made  him  a  welcome  member  of 
that  brilliant,  worldly  circle,  gathered  at  the  Court 
of  the  last  King  Louis  and  Marie  Antoinette.  He 
took  an  elegant  establishment  in  Paris  and  enter- 
tained with  easy  hospitality,  finding  his  chief  difficulty 
in  living  on  his  nine  thousand  dollars  salary,  with  the 
reduced  revenues  of  his  Virginia  estates,  ravaged  by 
the  War.  His  elder  daughter  went  over  with  him; 
and  he  sent,  shortly  after  arrival,  for  the  younger. 
He  formed  many  friendships  with  brilliant  women 
and  men. 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON 


141 


The  impression  made  upon  him  by  the  artificial 
French  society,  feverishly  dancing  on  the  brink  of 
revolution,  is  expressed  in  his  numerous  letters,  of 
which  the  following  is  a  characteristic  example: 

"Behold  me  at  length  on  the  vaunted  scene  of  Eu- 
rope! *  *  *  You  are,  perhaps,  curious  to  know  how 
this  new  scene  has  struck  a  savage  of  the  mountains  of 
America.  Not  advantageously,  I  assure  you.  I  find 
the  general  state  of  humanity  here  most  deplorable. 
The  truth  of  Voltaire's  observation,  offers  itself  perpet- 
ually, that  every  man  here  must  be  either  the  hammer 
or  the  anvil.  It  is  a  true  picture  of  that  country  to 
which  they  say  we  shall  pass  hereafter,  and  where  we 
are  to  see  God  and  his  angels  in  splendor,  and  crowds 
of  the  damned  trampled  under  their  feet.  While  the 
great  mass  of  the  people  are  thus  suffering  under  phys- 
ical and  moral  oppression,  I  have  endeavored  to  exam- 
ine more  nearly  the  condition  of  the  great,  to  appreci- 
ate the  true  value  of  the  circumstances  in  their  situa- 
tion, which  dazzle  the  bulk  of  spectators,  and,  especially, 
to  compare  it  with  that  degree  of  happiness  which  is 
enjoyed  in  America,  by  every  class  of  people.  Intrigues 
of  love  occupy  the  younger,  and  those  of  ambition,  the 
elder  part  of  the  great.  Conjugal  love  having  no  exist- 
ence among  them,  domestic  happiness,  of  which  that  is 
the  basis,  is  utterly  unknown.  In  lieu  of  this,  are  sub- 
stituted pursuits  which  nourish  and  invigorate  all  our 
bad  passions,  and  which  offer  only  moments  of  ecstacy 
amidst  days  and  months  of  restlessness  and  torment. 
Much,  very  much  inferior,  this,  to  the  tranquil,  perma- 
nent felicity  with  which  domestic  society  in  America 
blesses  most  of  its  inhabitants ;  leaving  them  to  follow 
steadily   those  pursuits   which  health   and   reason   ap- 


A  characteristic 
letter,  giving 
Jefferson's 
view  of 

French  society, 
in  contrast 
to  the  conditions 
prevailing  in 
America. 


The   philosopher 
of  democracy. 


142 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Pungent 
application 
to  present 
day  America! 


Jefferson  a 
lover  of  the 
arts. 


Influence  of 
the  American 
Revolution  on 
France. 


prove,   and   rendering   truly   delicious   the  intervals   of 
those  pursuits. 

"In  science,  the  mass  of  the  people  are  two  centuries 
behind  ours ;  their  literati,  half  a  dozen  years  before 
us.  Books,  really  good,  acquire  just  reputation  in  that 
time,  and  so  become  known  to  us,  and  communicate  to 
us  all  their  advances  in  knowledge.  Is  not  this  delay 
compensated,  by  our  being  placed  out  of  the  reach  of 
that  swarm  of  nonsensical  publications  which  issues 
daily  from  a  thousand  presses,  and  perishes  almost  in 
issuing?  *  *  *  Were  I  to  proceed  to  tell  you  how  much 
I  enjoy  their  architecture,  sculpture,  painting,  music,  I 
should  want  words.  It  is  in  these  arts  they  shine.  The 
last  of  them,  particularly,  is  an  enjoyment,  the  depriva- 
tion of  which  with  us,  cannot  be  calculated."* 

While  Jefferson  fulfilled  his  duties  as  diplomat 
with  scrupulous  fidelity,  and  was  entirely  at  home 
with  the  aristocrats  of  the  old  regime,  his  instincts 
and  settled  convictions  alike  fitted  him  fully  to  appre- 
ciate the  aims  of  those  leaders  who  were  bringing  on 
the  French  Revolution.  La  Fayette  was  one  of  his 
most  intimate  life-long  friends. 

France  was  deeply  influenced  by  our  example.  We 
had  fought  through  the  Revolution  successfully  and 
got  rid  of  kings:  why  should  not  she?  Of  course, 
there  was  a  difference:  our  King  was  an  absentee 
landlord;  while  theirs  lived  among  them,  exercising 
supremely  autocratic  power;  and  then,  there  was  a 
wide  difference  in  the  temperament  and  character  of 


*  Jefferson,  in  letter  to  Charles  Bellini,  Paris,   September  30,   1785: 
Writings,  Vol.  V,  pp.  152-4. 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  143 

the  two  peoples.  Nevertheless,  the  French  Revolu- 
tion was  profoundly  stimulated  by  ours. 

Here  in  America,  the  desperate  conditions  of  the 
years  following  the  War,  impressed  our  statesmen — 
Washington,  Hamilton  and  the  rest — with  the  need 
of  a  strong,  authoritative  central  government.  As 
the  French  Revolution  began,  they  saw  chiefly  its 
bloodshed  and  destructive  lawlessness,  and  drew  away 
from  it,  in  strong  disapproval,  turning  sympathetic- 
ally to  the  British  example  and  practice  in  govern- 
ment. Jefferson,  remote  from  the  situation  at  home 
and  so  less  influenced  by  it,  and  prepared  by  temper-  vf^™?1^ 
anient   and   political   philosophy  to  understand  the  French 

t  „,,,  *     i       ■£  i    -n         i-  Revolution. 

hopes  of  the  leaders  of  the  Jbrench  Revolution,  was, 
alone  among  our  statesmen,  able  to  see  across  the  in- 
itial bloodshed  to  its  final  meaning.  For  this,  he  was 
bitterly  attacked  at  the  time ;  and  slavish  biographers 
have  echoed  the  criticisms  to  the  present  hour;  but 
they  are  wrong ;  for  the  view  Thomas  Jefferson  took 
of  the  ultimate  significance  of  the  French  Revolu- 
tion is  the  one  held  by  every  liberal  scholar  in  the 
world  today.  The  Bastille  fell  before  his  return  from 
France ;  so  he  saw  the  actual  beginnings  of  the  Rev- 
olution. 

Jefferson's  years  in  Paris  gave  him  life-long  love 
and  devotion  to  France  and  the  French  people.  After 
reviewing  his  experience  in  the  Autobiography,  he 
said: 

"I     cannot     leave     this     great     and     good     country 

(France),  without  expressing  my  sense  of  its  pre-emi- 


1U 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Jefferson's 
permanent 
love  for 
France, 


His  intense 
Americanism, 
increased  by 
his  residence 
abroad. 


Letter  to 
James  Monroe, 
expressing 
Jefferson's 
view  of 
the  effect  of 
foreign 
residence. 


nence  of  character  among  the  nations  of  the  earth.  A 
more  benevolent  people  I  have  never  known,  nor  greater 
warmth  and  devotedness  in  their  select  friendships. 
Their  kindness  and  accommodation  to  strangers  is  un- 
paralleled, and  the  hospitality  of  Paris  is  beyond  any- 
thing I  had  conceived  to  be  practicable  in  a  large  city. 
Their  eminence,  too,  in  science,  the  communicative  dis- 
positions of  their  scientific  men,  the  politeness  of  the 
general  manners,  the  ease  and  vivacity  of  their  conver- 
sation, give  a  charm  to  their  society,  to  be  found  no- 
where else."* 

With  this  feeling  permanently  for  France,  Jeffer- 
son came  home  in  October,  1789,  only  the  more  whole- 
heartedly American.  His  residence  abroad  had  in- 
creased his  love  for  his  home  land  and  made  him  ideal- 
ize it.  This  is  expressed  in  numerous  letters  from 
Paris.  For  instance,  to  his  friend,  James  Monroe, 
he  had  written : 

"I  sincerely  wish  you  may  find  it  convenient  to  come 
here ;  the  pleasure  of  the  trip  will  be  less  than  you  ex- 
pect, but  the  utility  greater.  It  will  make  you  adore 
your  own  country,  its  soil,  its  climate,  its  equality,  lib- 
erty, laws,  people  and  manners.  My  God !  how  little  do 
my  countrymen  know  what  precious  blessings  they  are 
in  possession  of,  and  which  no  other  people  on  earth  en- 
joy.    I  confess  I  had  no  idea  of  it  myself."  f 

Jefferson's  advice,  based  upon  his  experience,  that 
the  best  way  to  waken  love  of  one's  own  land  is  to  live 


*  Jefferson,  Autobiography:     Writings,  Vol.  I,  p.  159. 
f  Jefferson,    in    a    letter    to    James    Monroe,    Paris,    June    17,    1785: 
Writings,  Vol.  V,  p.  21. 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  145 

abroad  awhile,  is  just  as  true  today  as  when  Jefferson 
gave  it  to  Monroe. 

Jefferson  returned  believing  in  America  for  Amer-  Formulating 
icans,  deprecating  free  immigration,  advocating  the    of  the*1"1*  e 
complete   detachment   of   America   from   European  Mon™e  Doctrine. 
politics  and  conflicts,  formulating  the  principles  Mon- 
roe afterwards  promulgated  in  what  we  know  as  the 
Monroe  Doctrine.     Monroe  proclaimed  it;    but  Jef- 
ferson  formulated  it.  iSE'to 

Jefferson  had  expected,  on  his  return,  to  retire  to  return  to 

*■  ,  France,  and 

spend  some  time  at  Monticello  and  go  back  to  France,  embarrassment 
To  his  surprise  and  embarrassment,  he  found  that  invitation^011 
Washington  wanted  him,  as  Secretary  of  State,  in  sec°Sary  of 
the  newly  formed  Federal  Government.    His  experi-  state- 
ence  abroad  had  increased  Jefferson's  strong  belief  in 
the  need  for  a  union  of  the  States.    He  held  that  "The 
politics  of  Europe  render  it  indispensably  necessary 
that,  with  respect  to  everything  external,  we  be  one  jJeHef^n'a 
nation  only,  firmly  hooped  together.     Interior  gov-  uni<>n  of 
ernment  is  what  each  State  should  keep  to  itself."  *   substantial 
He  followed,  with  deep  interest  and  increasing  ap-  the^onstitution, 
proval,  the  formulation  of  the  Constitution,  in  which  J^^™ 
his  friend,  James  Madison,  had  so  important  a  part. 
His  two  criticisms  of  the  Constitution,  as  signed,  were 
that  it  contained  no  bill  of  rights  and  no  prohibition 
of  the  repeated  re-election  of  a  President:  both  valid 
objections.     His  view  is  best  expressed  in  a  letter  objections  to 

p  t>      •      j.      a     t^         ii  tne  Constitution. 

from  Fans,  to  A.  Donald: 


*  Jefferson,    in   letter   to   James   Madison,   Paris,   February    8,    1786 
Writings,  Vol.  VI,  p.  278. 


146 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  letter 
giving 
Jefferson's 
matured  view  of 
the  Constitution. 


The  Amendments 
answering 
Jefferson's 
chief    objection 
to  the 
Constitution, 


"I  wish  with  all  my  soul,  that  the  nine  first  conven- 
tions may  accept  the  new  constitution,  because  this  will 
secure  to  us  the  good  it  contains,  which  I  think  great 
and  important.  But  I  equally  wish,  that  the  four  latest 
conventions,  whichever  they  be,  may  refuse  to  accede  to 
it,  till  a  declaration  of  rights  be  annexed.  This  would 
probably  command  the  offer  of  such  a  declaration,  and 
thus  give  to  the  whole  fabric,  perhaps,  as  much  perfec- 
tion as  anyone  of  that  kind  ever  had.  By  a  declaration 
of  rights,  I  mean  one  which  shall  stipulate  freedom  of 
religion,  freedom  of  the  press,  freedom  of  commerce 
against  monopolies,  trial  by  juries  in  all  cases,  no  sus- 
pensions of  the  habeas  corpus,  no  standing  armies. 
These  are  the  fetters  against  doing  evil,  which  no  hon- 
est government  should  decline.  There  is  another  strong 
feature  in  the  new  Constitution,  which  I  as  strongly  dis- 
like. That  is,  the  perpetual  re-eligibility  of  the  Presi- 
dent. Of  this  I  expect  no  amendment  at  present,  because 
I  do  not  see  that  anybody  has  objected  to  it  on  your 
side  the  water.  *  *  *  We  must  take  care,  however, 
that  neither  this,  nor  any  other  objection  to  the  new 
form,  produces  a  schism  in  our  Union.  That  would  be 
an  incurable  evil,  because  near  friends  falling  out,  never 
re-unite  cordially;  whereas,  all  of  us  going  together, 
we  shall  be  sure  to  cure  the  evils  of  our  new  Constitution, 
before  they  do  great  harm."* 

Eleven  States  had  ratified  the  Nation's  charter  be- 
fore Jefferson  left  France ;  and  the  ten  great  Amend- 
ments, which  answered  his  chief  objection  to  it,  were 
proposed  at  the  first  session  of  Congress,  shortly  after 
his  return.     He  was  reluctant,  nevertheless,  to  as- 


*  Jefferson,  in  letter  to  A.  Donald,  Paris,  Feb.  7,  1788:     Writings, 
Vol.  Vl/pp.  425,  426. 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  147 

sume  the  duties  of  Secretary  of  State;   but  yielding 

to  Washington's  reiterated  wish,  he  accepted,  taking  as^Secrefary  of 

Office  in  March,  1790.  State,   in   March, 

The  most  important  problem  of  foreign  relations, 
Jefferson  had  to  handle  as  Secretary  of  State,  was 
the  Genet  affair.    France,  under  the  Directorate,  de-   mi    „     ± 

.      ,  The  Genet 

clared  war  on  Britain;   and  as  the  treaty  of  alliance,   affair. 
of  1778,  had  never  been  repealed,  assumed  that  we 
would  enter  the  war  on  the  side  of  France.     Citizen 
Genet   was    sent    over;   and   landed    at    Charleston,    conduct  of 
South  Carolina,  in  April,  1793.     He  came  North,  ^aSvfngln 
greeted  with  wild  enthusiasm  by  the  French-loving  America. 
populace,  enlisting  men  to  fight  against  Britain,  ar- 
ranged for  the  French  consuls  to  act  as  courts  for 
prize  ships  brought  into  American  ports,  and  even 
made  plans  for  fitting  out  privateers  to  sail  from  our 
ports  and  prey  on  British  commerce. 

With  the  intense  popular  sympathy  for  France, 
the  result  was  the  serious  embarrassment  of  the  Gov- 
ernment. We  were  a  young,  struggling  country,  bur- 
dened with  the  devastation  and  debts  of  the  Revo- 
lution, in  no  condition  to  go  to  war,  and  with  no  rea- 
son for  it,  except  the  old  French  friendship. 

The  consequence  was  a  split  in  the  Cabinet.    Ham- 
ilton, Knox  and  Randolph,  with  whom  Washington   0    ogin 
agreed,  held  that  France  had  declared  a  war  of  ag-  views  in  the 

.  .,  fl  ,,.  „  Administration. 

gression,  while  the  treaty  was  for  an  alliance  for  mu- 
tual defense,  and  that  our  treaty  had  been  made  with 
King  Louis;  and  since  he  had  lost  his  throne  and 
head,  and  an  entirely  different  government  had  been 


148 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Jefferson's 
treatment   of 
Citizen  Genet. 


The  Neutrality 
Proclamation, 
furnishing  the 
permanent  basis 
for  our  foreign 
policy. 


established  as  a  result  of  the  French  Revolution,  the 
treaty  was  automatically  abrogated.  This  was  per- 
haps the  technically  correct  view,  and  certainly  the 
view  expedient  for  American  interests. 

Jefferson,  loving  France  passionately  and  welcom- 
ing her  Revolution,  hating  Britain  and  regarding  his 
colleagues  in  the  government  as  servile  toward  her, 
argued  just  the  opposite.  He  held  that  the  treaty 
had  been  made  in  good  faith ;  France  had  loyally  ful- 
filled her  part  under  it,  during  our  Revolutionary 
War;  we  were  not  concerned  with  domestic  changes 
in  France;  and  the  treaty  was,  therefore,  still  bind- 
ing. This  was  the  more  generous  and  the  more  moral 
view,  though  inconsistent  with  practical  American  in- 
terests. 

Jefferson  therefore  welcomed  Citizen  Genet,  had 
conferences  with  him  and  sought  to  further  his  plans. 
When,  however,  Genet  arrogantly  announced  his  in- 
tention to  appeal,  across  the  head  of  the  beloved  Pres- 
ident, Washington,  to  the  people  of  the  United 
States,  Jefferson  shared  the  universal  indignation, 
would  have  nothing  more  to  do  with  Genet  and  his 
schemes,  and  from  that  time  supported  Washington's 
policy.  The  result  of  these  circumstances,  however, 
was  that  Washington's  great  Neutrality  Proclama- 
tion was  drafted,  not  by  Jefferson,  the  Secretary  of 
State,  but  by  Randolph,  the  Attorney  General.  It 
might  be  added  that  Citizen  Genet  did  not  go  back 
to  France :  he  married  a  daughter  of  Governor  Clin- 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  149 

ton,  of  New  York,  and  settled  down  in  New  York 
City,  to  innocuous  citizenship. 

During  the  early  period  of  Jefferson's  service  as 
Secretary  of  State,  he  was  on  entirely  friendly  terms  Jefferson's 
with  Washington's  great  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  Hamilton with 
Hamilton.     When  in  his  fight  to  make  the  Federal 
government  a  living  reality,  Hamilton  was  threat- 
ened with  defeat  on  his  key-measure,  for  the  assump- 
tion of  state  debts  by  the  Federal  Government,  he 
came  to  Jefferson  and  proposed  that  if  Jefferson 
would  give  him  the  needed  Virginia  votes  for  as- 
sumption, he  would  furnish  enough  Federalist  votes  to 
place  the  new  Capital  where  Jefferson  and  the  other 
southern  leaders  wanted  it :  where  it  is  today.    Other-  bargain  on 
wise,  the  Capital  would  have  gone  to  New  York  or  ^T^SS.""1' 
Philadelphia,  as  the  majority  of  votes  favored  one  of 
those  places. 

At  that  time,  Jefferson  was  not  opposed  to  Ham- 
ilton's measure,  probably  not  recognizing  the  conse- 
quences it  carried.  Also,  Jefferson  did  not  realize 
the  feeling  in  the  South,  and  thought  it  would  be 
well  for  the  Federal  Government  to  take  over  the 
State  debts.  So  he  cheerfully  agreed.  In  July,  1790, 
came  the  vote  on  the  Capital;  and  Hamilton  carried 
out  his  part  of  the  bargain.  In  August,  the  final  vote 
came  on  assumption.  Jefferson,  true  to  his  side  of  the 
agreement,  furnished  the  needed  Virginia  votes;  and 
Hamilton's  key  measure  carried  by  a  slight  mar- 
gin. That  is  why  the  Capital  is  at  Washington ;  and 
that  is  why  there  was  a  government  in  it,   strong 


150  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

enough  to  survive  the  Civil  War  and  function  effec- 
tively to  the  present  hour. 

As  time  went  on,  however,  Jefferson  drew  back, 
Reasons  for  the  in  increasing  alarm,  from  the  rapidly  growing  power 
Hamilton*  °^  tne  federal  Government,  under  Hamilton's  vig- 

orous fostering  with  Washington's  sanction.  To  un- 
derstand this,  one  must  remember  the  fundamental 
contrast  between  the  two  men.  Hamilton  was  force- 
ful and  aggressive,  rather  loving  a  fight.  Jefferson 
'was  pacific  and  conciliatory,  disliking  a  quarrel,  but 
holding  tenaciously  to  his  opinions.  Hamilton,  more- 
over, believed,  by  temperament  and  conviction,  in  the 
•strongest  government  possible  consistent  with  liberty. 

Contrast  in  the       T    ^  i     ,,      ,        ,  ,  ,  ... 

two  great  leaders,  J  errerson,  equally  by  temperament  and  conviction, 
and^Mlosophy.  believed  in  the  least  government  possible,  consistent 
with  law  and  order.  He  held  that  when  government 
goes  much  beyond  the  police  functions  of  protecting 
life  and  property  and  enforcing  contracts,  it  is  in  dan- 
ger of  passing  over  into  tyranny. 

Jefferson  never  understood  Hamilton's  funding 
scheme,  and  failed  to  appreciate  the  moral  signifi- 
cance of  his  plans  for  paying  the  Nation's  debt,  un- 
justly regarding  these  measures  as  a  mere  device  to 
gain  partisan  adherents  for  the  Federalist  group. 
He  sincerely  believed  that  the  Treasury  Department 
was  corrupting  the  Congress,  and  that  the  govern- 
ment was  going  headlong  toward  monarchy. 

The  result  was  a  growing  rupture  between  Jeffer- 
son and  Hamilton:  the  fundamental  opposition  in 
conviction  finally  becoming  bitter  personal  enmity. 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON 


151 


Jefferson  fostered,  or  at  least  approved,  the  increas- 
ingly bitter  attacks  upon  Hamilton,  finally  directly 
arraigning  him  and  his  policies  in  letters  to  the  Presi- 
dent. When  he  found,  however,  that  Washington  Resignation  from 
continued  to  favor  every  one  of  Hamilton's  measures  *^3Cabinet  m 
for  strengthening  the  power  and  authority  of  the 
central  government,  he  resigned  at  the  end  of  1793, 
and  went  home,  with  mingled  relief  and  disgust,  to 
Virginia. 

Late  in  his  life,  Jefferson  wrote  out  gossipy,  anec- 
dotal reminiscences,  for  which  he  had  kept  notes  at  character  of 
the  time,  of  his  experiences  as  member  of  Washing- 
ton's Cabinet.  He  called  them  Anas;  and  left  them 
to  be  published  after  his  death.  In  the  Anas,  with  the 
reiterated  charge  that  Hamilton  governed  by  corrup- 
tion, Jefferson  says  that  Hamilton  tricked  him  into 
the  bargain  on  the  Capital  and  assumption;  that  he 
had  recently  returned  from  France,  did  not  under- 
stand the  situation,  and  was  deceived.  That  was  not 
true:  Jefferson  was  not  tricked.  He  experienced  a 
sincere  change  in  conviction ;  and  should  have  so  stated 
it.  Leaving  for  publication,  after  death,  these  Anas, 
with  their  unjustly  sinister  reflections  on  a  great  as- 
sociate, long  since  dead,  is  the  darkest  stain  upon  Jef- 
ferson's high  career. 

The  instance  is  mentioned  as  the  most  flagrant  ex- 
ample of  Jefferson's  gravest  fault,  occasional  unfair- 
ness to  individuals,  with  tenacious  holding  to  per- 
sonal resentment.  Always  close  to  the  heart  of  the 
people,  with  almost  a  divining  power  in  relation  to  the 


Jefferson's 
worst  fault. 


152 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Significance  of 
Jefferson's  lack 
of  humor. 


Jefferson's 
preference  for 
agriculture. 


Vice  President. 


popular  attitude,  Jefferson  was  sometimes  unjust  to 
persons.  One  wonders  whether  this  fault  came  partly 
from  his  lack  of  that  abundant  sense  of  humor,  pos- 
sessed by  Hamilton  and  Washington,  and  still  more 
by  Franklin  and  Lincoln,  among  our  great  states- 
men. Wit,  Jefferson  had,  repartee,  intellectual  clev- 
erness; but  he  was  without  that  genial  humor  that 
gives  perspective  and  their  right  values  to  great  and 
small. 

Jefferson  was  delighted  to  get  back  to  Monticello 
and  resume  his  life  as  a  country  gentleman.  He  al- 
ways called  himself  a  farmer;  and  regarded  agricul- 
ture as  the  natural  vocation  of  man,  desiring,  indeed, 
to  keep  the  whole  country  agricultural,  as  the  only  life 
consistent  with  sobriety  and  morality.  He  went  so 
far  as  to  regard  yellow  fever  as  a  desirable  scourge,  a 
blessing  in  disguise,  since  he  held  it  would  forever 
prevent  men  living  in  cities. 

When  the  election  of  1796  occurred  and  the  votes 
of  the  electoral  college  were  counted,  it  was  found, 
Washington  having  refused  to  stand,  that  John  Ad- 
ams had  the  largest  number  of  votes  for  President, 
and  Jefferson  the  next  number.  According  to  the 
Constitution  at  that  time,  Adams  automatically  be- 
came President  and  Jefferson  Vice  President:  the 
one  a  strong  Federalist;  the  other,  the  outstanding 
opponent  of  the  growing  Federal  power.  Adams  and 
Jefferson,  though  with  a  period  of  estrangement,  re- 
mained friends  to  the  end  of  their  joint  lives;  and 
some  of  Jefferson's  loveliest  letters  were  written  to 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  153 


John  and  Samuel  Adams.  President  Adams  was, 
however,  dominating,  sure  of  his  own  opinions,  deny- 
ing Jefferson  any  real  share  in  the  government.  Jef- 
ferson therefore  spent  his  term  as  Vice  President  in 
consolidating  the  elements  of  opposition  to  the  rap- 
idly growing  power  of  the  central  government.  He 
was  thus  the  founder  of  the  first  consciously  formed 
political  party,  since  the  Federalists  were  forced  into) 
a  party  by  Jefferson's  organized  opposition.  Jeffer-j  organizing  the 
son  named  his  organization  the  Republican  party .1  longest-lived        ; 

°  x  political  party  in 

It  was  afterwards  called  the  Republican-Democratic, \  the  United  states.; 
and  finally  the  Democratic  party.  It  is  the  party  that 
has  had  the  longest  life  of  any  in  the  United  States; 
that  has  repeatedly  returned  to  the  principles  formu- 
lated by  Jefferson ;  and  that,  in  spite  of  the  apparent 
results  of  certain  recent  elections,  is  alive,  vigorous 
and  flourishing  at  the  present  time. 

During  Adams's  administration  occurred  the  trou- 
ble with  France  over  the  "XYZ  Letters",  in  which   Effect  on  the 
the  French  cynically  demanded  bribes  of  large  sums   ^wai^scare 
of  money,  before  even  seeing  President  Adams's  spe-  £™r  the  XYZ 
cial  commissioners.     The  publication  of  the  Letters 
over  here  caused  nation-wide  indignation  and  a  gen- 
eral demand  for  war.     The  scare  subsided  however. 
The  Directorate  fell,  succeeded  by  Napoleon,  who 
showed  better  sense  in  his  dealings.     As  a  result  of 
it  all,  the  Federalist  leaders  in  office  lost  their  heads, 
and  enacted  most  unwise  legislation,  the  Alien  and 
Sedition  Laws,  which  doomed  their  party. 

Those  Federalist  leaders  had  made  the  central  gov- 


154 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  unwise 
Alien  and 
Sedition  laws. 


Jefferson's  protest 
in  the  Kentucky 
Resolutions. 


Jefferson's  views 
of  State  versus 
Nation. 


ernment :  it  was  a  natural  mistake  for  them  to  regard 
attacks  upon  themselves  as  attacks  upon  the  govern- 
ment. That  is  by  no  means  the  only  time  in  our  his- 
tory when  men  in  office  have  regarded  criticism  of 
themselves  as  criticism  of  the  government;  but  in  no 
other  instance  had  the  mistake  so  much  excuse.  In 
this  mood,  the  Alien  laws  were  passed,  providing  four- 
teen years  before  an  immigrant  could  become  a  natu- 
ralized citizen ;  and  during  that  long  period  the  Pres- 
ident could  deport  the  immigrant  at  will,  without 
legal  action,  merely  declaring  him  dangerous  or  un- 
desirable: a  grave  abuse  of  power.  The  Sedition 
laws  were  worse :  for  conspiring  against  the  Govern- 
ment and  its  measures,  for  interfering  with  its  activ- 
ities, or  for  issuing  scandalous  material  concerning  the 
President,  Congress  or  the  government  departments, 
the  penalty  was  severe  fine  and  imprisonment:  gag- 
law  of  the  worst  kind.  Jefferson  was  furious.  He 
drafted,  in  protest,  a  series  of  resolutions,  which  were 
adopted  in  November,  1798,  by  the  Kentucky  Legis- 
lature, and  are  therefore  called  the  Kentucky  Resolu- 
tions. His  friend,  James  Madison,  drafted  a  similar 
series,  adopted  a  month  later  by  the  Legislature  of 
the  State  of  Virginia,  and  so  called  the  Virginia  Res- 
olutions. 

.  In  the  Kentucky  Resolutions,  Jefferson  held  that 
the  Federal  Government  could  rightfully  exercise 
only  such  powers  as  were  specifically  assigned  to  it 
in  the  Constitution ;  that  each  State  had  the  right  to 
annul — nullify — any  act  of  the  Federal  Government 


The  dead  lock 
in  the  election 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  155 

not  specifically  warranted  in  the  Constitution;  and 
(most  dangerous  of  all)  each  State  was  to  be  its  own 
final  judge  as  to  when  its  rights  had  been  violated: 
thus  denying  the  authority  of  the  Supreme  Court 
finally  to  interpret  the  Constitution. 

These  Resolutions  were  a  much  needed  protest,  at 
the  time,  against  the  wickedness  of  the  Alien  and  Se- 
dition Laws ;  but  they  contained  germs  of  grave  trou- 
ble, which  was  to  develop  and  culminate  in  the  Civil 
War. 

The  situation  described  destroyed  all  chance  of 
John  Adams  succeeding  himself  as  President;  and 
when  the  election  of  1800  was  held,  and  the  votes  of  of  180°- 
the  electoral  college  were  counted,  it  was  found  there 
was  an  equal  number  of  votes  for  the  two  leading 
candidates,  Jefferson  and  Aaron  Burr,  for  President. 
This  threw  the  election  into  the  strongly  Federalist 
House  of  Representatives.  Party  feeling  has  never 
been  more  bitter  than  it  was  then.    Certain  Federal- 

Threats  of 

ists,  who  thought  they  owned  the  Government,  talked  disregarding  the 
of  setting  the  Constitution  aside  and  appointing  a  Constitution- 
Federalist  President  pro  tempore.    Fortunately,  that 
nefarious  step  was  not  taken. 

Jefferson  was  the  outstanding  leader  of  the  oppo- 
sition ;  and  so  most  bitterly  hated.  You  know  it  takes 
a  great  man  to  be  greatly  hated.  The  House  was 
therefore  inclined  to  give  the  election  to  Aaron  Burr, 
which  would  have  been  a  national  calamity.  At  this 
point,  Hamilton  intervened.  He  and  Jefferson  were 
now  personal  enemies ;  but  Hamilton  recognized  that 


156 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Jefferson  was  a  patriot,  and  in  office,  would  serve 
the  country  with  all  his  wisdom  and  ability.  On  the 
other  hand,  Hamilton  regarded  Aaron  Burr  as  an  un- 
Hamiiton's  part  in  scrupulous  adventurer,  who  would  be  most  dangerous 
Pr^wfntefferS°n  *n  ^e  presidential  chair,  possibly  even  attempting  to 
make  himself  king;  and  Burr's  later  career  would 
seem  to  indicate  that  Hamilton's  distrust  was  not 
without  foundation.  Thus  it  was  Alexander  Ham- 
ilton who  influenced  enough  Federalist  votes  in  the 
House  of  Representatives  to  make  his  personal  enemy, 
Thomas  Jefferson,  President  of  the  United  States. 
Do  not  forget  it:  it  was  one  of  the  great  actions  of 
Hamilton's  great  career. 

Jefferson's  Inaugural  Address  was  a  high  state- 
ment of  his  whole  program  of  political  principles: 
next  to  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  it  is  per- 
haps his  most  important  writing  as  philosopher  of 
democracy.  In  it  he  said,  "We  are  all  Republicans 
— we  are  all  Federalists."  He  hoped  to  unite  the 
whole  people  behind  him,  as  Washington  had  done; 
and  he  very  nearly  achieved  it. 

He  stated  in  the  Inaugural  his  conception  of  what 
government  should  be: 

"A  wise  and  frugal  government,  which  shall  restrain 
men  from  injuring  one  another,  which  shall  leave  them 
otherwise  free  to  regulate  their  own  pursuits  of  industry 
and  improvement,  and  shall  not  take  from  the  mouth  of 
labor  the  bread  it  has  earned.  This  is  the  sum  of  good 
government.  *  *  * 

"Equal  and  exact  justice  to   all  men,  of  whatever 


Statement  of 
Jefferson's 
political 
philosophy  in 
his  Inaugural 
Address. 


Jefferson's 
conception  of 
government. 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON 


157 


state  and  persuasion,  religious  or  political ;  peace,  com- 
merce, and  honest  friendship,  with  all  nations — entang- 
ling alliances  with  none;  the  support  of  the  state  gov- 
ernments in  all  their  rights,  as  the  most  competent  ad- 
ministrations for  our  domestic  concerns  and  the  surest 
bulwarks  against  anti-republican  tendencies;  the  pre- 
servation of  the  general  government  in  its  whole  consti- 
tutional vigor,  as  the  sheet  anchor  of  our  peace  at  home 
and  safety  abroad;  a  jealous  care  of  the  right  of  elec- 
tion by  the  people — a  mild  and  safe  corrective  of  abuses 
which  are  lopped  by  the  sword  of  the  revolution  where 
peaceable  remedies  are  unprovided;  absolute  acquies- 
cence in  the  decisions  of  the  majority — the  vital  princi- 
ple of  republics,  from  which  there  is  no  appeal  but  to 
force,  the  vital  principle  and  immediate  parent  of  de- 
spotism; a  well-disciplined  militia — our  best  reliance 
in  peace  and  for  the  first  moments  of  war,  till  regulars 
may  relieve  them;  the  supremacy  of  the  civil  over  the 
military  authority ;  economy  in  the  public  expense,  that 
labor  may  be  lightly  burdened;  the  honest  payment  of 
our  debts  and  sacred  preservation  of  the  public  faith; 
encouragement  of  agriculture,  and  of  commerce  as  its 
handmaid;  the  diffusion  of  information  and  the  ar- 
raignment of  all  abuses  at  the  bar  of  public  reason; 
freedom  of  religion ;  freedom  of  the  press ;  freedom  of 
person  under  the  protection  of  the  habeas  corpus;  and 
trial  by  juries  impartially  selected — these  principles 
form  the  bright  constellation  which  has  gone  before  us, 
and  guided  our  steps  through  an  age  of  revolution  and 
reformation.  *  *  *  They  should  be  the  creed  of  our 
political  faith — the  text  of  civil  instruction — the  touch- 
stone by  which  to  try  the  services  of  those  we  trust."* 


Summary  of 
Jefferson's 
political  principles 
in  the  Inaugural 
Address. 


*  Jefferson,  from  first  Inaugural  Address : 
320-322. 


Writings,  Vol.  Ill,  pp. 


158 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  charming 
letter  to  the  aged 
Samuel  Adams. 


Jefferson's 
excellent  cabinet. 


On  the  basis  of  these  principles,  which  he  hoped  to 
carry  out  in  his  administration,  Jefferson  assumed  the 
presidency.  Three  weeks  after  the  inauguration,  he 
wrote  a  letter  to  Samuel  Adams,  then  seventy-eight 
years  old,  which  reveals  his  most  lovable  aspect: 

"I  addressed  a  letter  to  you,  my  very  dear  and  an- 
cient friend,  on  the  4th  of  March:  not  indeed  to  you 
by  name,  but  through  the  medium  of  some  of  my  fellow- 
citizens,  whom  occasion  called  on  me  to  address.  In 
meditating  the  matter  of  that  address,  I  often  asked 
myself,  is  this  exactly  in  the  spirit  of  the  patriarch, 
Samuel  Adams?  Is  it  as  he  would  express  it?  Will  he 
approve  of  it?  I  have  felt  a  great  deal  for  our  country 
in  the  times  we  have  seen.  *  *  *  How  much  I  lament 
that  time  has  deprived  me  of  your  aid !  It  would  have 
been  a  day  of  glory  which  should  have  called  you  to  the 
first  office  of  the  administration.  But  give  us  your 
counsel,  my  friend,  and  give  us  your  blessing;  and  be 
assured  that  there  exists  not  in  the  heart  of  man  a 
more  faithful  esteem  than  mine  to  you,  and  that  I  shall 
ever  bear  you  the  most  affectionate  veneration  and  re- 
spect." * 

Among  Jefferson's  first  acts,  as  President,  was  the 
freeing  of  those  imprisoned  under  the  Alien  and  Se- 
dition Laws;  which  was  right.  He  gave  the  first 
post  in  the  Cabinet  to  his  close  friend  and  gifted  dis- 
ciple, James  Madison;  and  the  other  members  were 
all  men  of  high  character  and  education. 

Under  the  Federalist  notion  of  owning  the  govern- 
ment, John  Adams  had  used  the  last  hours  of  his  term 


*  Jefferson,  letter  to  Samuel  Adams,  Washington,  March  29th,  1801 : 
Writings,  Vol.  X,  pp.  250,  251. 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON 


159 


to  fill  every  office  under  presidential  patronage: 
"midnight  judges,"  certain  of  these  appointees  were 
called.  Jefferson  naturally  and  justly  resented  this; 
and  as  rapidly  as  he  could  do  so,  without  disturbing 
the  public  service,  replaced  these  with  men  of  his  own 
party.  For  this  he  has  been  attacked  as  the  author 
of  the  spoils  system.  The  criticism  is  unjust:  he 
was  merely  correcting  his  predecessor's  unfair  use  of 
power.  One  of  the  reasons  (there  were  others!)  for 
Jefferson's  hatred  of  Chief  Justice  Marshall  was  that 
Marshall  was  one  of  Adams's  midnight  judges,  and 
being  appointed  for  life,  Jefferson  could  not  remove 
him. 

Believing,  as  Jefferson  sincerely  did,  that  Hamilton 
wanted  a  monarchy  and  that,  politically  and  socially, 
the  country  was  moving  rapidly  toward  aristocracy, 
he  sought  to  thwart  that  tendency  in  every  possible 
way.  He  abandoned  the  system  of  etiquette  Wash- 
ington had  prepared  for  behavior  toward  the  Pres 
ident  and  abolished  the  weekly  levees.  He  dressed; 
deliberately  in  slipshod  fashion,  in  contrast  to  his  eax-\ 
lier  dandyism;  and  adopted  a  behavior  widely  dif- 
ferent from  that  which  had  given  him  his  reputation 
as  an  unusually  cultivated  gentleman.  His  state  din- 
ners were  arranged  on  what  was  called  the  "pell- 
mell"  plan.  The  dinners  themselves  were  excellent: 
Jefferson  had  brought  over  a  French  chef,  and  the 
wines  were  as  famous  as  at  Monticello;  but  the  plan 
was,  when  dinner  was  announced,  all  present  thronged 
into  the  dining  room,  taking  any  available  seats,  with 


Significance  of 
removing  the 
"midnight  judges. 


Efforts  to  thwart 
tendencies   toward 
monarchy  and 
aristocracy. 


Jefferson's 
experiments 
in  social 
democracy. 


160 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  Louisiana 
Purchase,  the 
outstanding 
achievement  of 
Jefferson  as 
President. 


no  precedence  whatever,  even  for  foreign  ambassa- 
dors. The  result  was,  a  stately  minister  would  find 
himself  at  one  end  of  the  table;  while  his  wife, 
crowded  out  in  the  throng,  would  be  seated  at  the 
other  end,  between  two  quite  undesirable  compan- 
ions. Jefferson  actually  got  into  trouble  with  for- 
eign governments,  in  consequence;  and  he  finally 
came  to  see  that  the  ordinary  usages  of  polite  society 
are  not  necessarily  opposed  to  the  principles  of  de- 
mocracy, and  returned  to  those  usages. 

The  great  achievement,  however,  of  Jefferson  as 
President,  and  the  supreme  anomaly  of  his  career  was 
the  Louisiana  Purchase.  The  year  that  Jefferson 
was  elected  President,  Spain  ceded  to  Napoleon  her 
claim  to  that  vast  territory,  extending  from  New  Or- 
leans to  the  northwest  Pacific  coast.  Jefferson's  sym- 
pathy for  France  had  been  chilled  by  the  rise  of  Na- 
poleon out  of  the  ashes  of  revolution;  and  he  re- 
garded Napoleon's  possible  possession  of  an  Ameri- 
can empire  with  grave  alarm.  His  first  thought  was 
that  "The  day  that  France  takes  possession  of  New 
Orleans  *  *  we  must  marry  ourselves  to  the  British 
fleet  and  nation."*  His  one  hope  of  avoiding  grave 
trouble  and  probably  war  with  France  was  that  Na- 
poleon might  recognize  our  paramount  interest,  and 
be  willing  to  cede  New  Orleans  for  a  price.  He 
therefore  urged  our  Ambassador  to  begin  negotia- 
tions, and  then  sent  Monroe,  as  special  envoy,  with 


*  Jefferson,   in  letter   to  the  U.   S.   Minister   to  France,  April   18th, 
1802:     Writings,  Vol.  X,  p.  313. 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  161 

private  instructions  and  large  authority  for  the  pur- 
chase of  New  Orleans  and  the  territory  immediately 
about  it;  which  was  all  he  imagined  he  could  get. 
Understand:  Jefferson  did  not  originate  this  idea: 
it  was  an  old  problem.  As  the  population  spread  j^rranropenU|?rtS 
westward,  there  was  an  increasing  demand  for  an  on  the  Mississippi. 
open  port  at  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi,  the  great 
artery  through  which  commerce  could  be  carried  on 
with  the  old  world.  Washington  had  been  occupied 
with  the  problem;  and  Jefferson,  as  his  Secretary  of 
State,  had  struggled  to  secure  free  navigation.  At 
one  time,  Kentucky  had  threatened  to  leave  the  rest 
of  the  states  and  form  a  separate  nation,  to  attain  this 
long-cherished  desire.  Jefferson  merely  believed  the 
time  had  come  for  realizing  it. 

To  Napoleon,  however,  the  possession  of  this  em- 
pire proved  an  embarrassment.  He  had  not  been 
able  to  shake  England's  command  of  the  seas.  All 
she  would  need  to  do  would  be  to  detach  a  portion 
of  her  fleet  and  army,  take  New  Orleans;  and  the  sold  his  American 
claim  to  the  entire  territory  would  be  hers,  and  not  empire- 
Napoleon's.  He  finally  offered,  therefore,  to  sell  the 
whole  empire,  for  a  sum  which,  with  the  assumption 
of  American  claims  against  France,  amounted  to 
about  sixteen  million  dollars.  For  this  insignificant 
sum  of  national  small  change,  Jefferson  bought  that 
vast  empire,  from  New  Orleans  to  Tacoma  and 
Seattle,  which  has  made  our  greater  America  pos- 
sible.   Through  Jefferson's  urging,  the  bill  was  rushed 


162  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

through  both  houses  of  Congress  in  four  days;   and 

the  purchase  was  completed. 

Jefferson  had  great  difficulty  in  settling  the  pur- 
Paradox  of  the  chase  with  his  own  conscience,  and  still  more  in  ex- 
Purchase,  and  its    plaJning  it  to  the  public.    The  point  is,  Jefferson  had 

explanation.  r  &  r  r  > 

held,  publicly  and  repeatedly,  that  the  Federal  gov- 
ernment could  rightfully  exercise  only  such  powers 
as  were  specifically  assigned  to  it  in  the  Constitu- 
tion; and  there  was  nothing  in  the  Constitution  giv- 
ing the  President  of  the  United  States  the  right  to 
use  the  national  funds,  even  with  the  consent  of  Con- 
gress, to  buy  an  empire  from  a  foreign  potentate. 

The  explanation  of  the  paradox  is  that  Jefferson 

was  wiser  as  practical  statesman  than  as  political 

Jefferson's  wisdom  theorist ;   that  as  national  executive  he  did  the  thing 

in  meeting  the       he  saw  was  right  and  best  for  the  welfare  and  prog- 

practical  issue.  °  ....  . 

ress  of  the  country,  and  did  it  in  direct  violation  of 
his  oft-expressed  opinions  regarding  the  Constitution. 
He  was  the  greater  man  thus  to  rise  to  the  issue  and 
solve  it  for  the  Nation's  good.     It  is  worth  noting 
that,  in  office,  Jefferson,  Madison  and  Monroe  all 
what  executive       were  compelled  to  act  on  the  basis  of  Hamilton's 
to* political  y    °e3  view  of  the  implied  powers  in  the  Constitution ;  which 
theorists.  sayS  mucn  for  that  view,  as  well  as  showing  how  of- 

ficial responsibility  is  apt  to  convert  liberal  theorists 
into  political  realists  in  handling  practical  problems. 
Jefferson  was  intensely  interested  in  the  empire  he 
had  given  the  nation.  He  appointed  his  secretary, 
Captain  Lewis,  the  son  of  his  neighbor,  in  command 
of  an  expedition  to  explore  the  new  territory.     Con- 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  163 

gress  gave  the  Lewis  and  Clarke  expedition  five  thou- 

_     ,    ,,  ~r    no  r^  Jefferson   planning 

sand  dollars  expense  money.     Jefferson  gave  Cap-   the  Lewis  and 

..-j-  ,-,         -iiii  i  j  j.1  j«j.i?    Clarke  expedition, 

tain  Lewis  the  right  to  draw  at  need  on  the  credit  ot    and  deeply 
the  United  States  government:   he  meant  to  see  the   ^^^  itS 
expedition  rightly  carried  out.    He  was  intensely  in- 
terested in  all  the  discoveries:    fauna,  flora,  streams, 
mountains,  Indian  life. 

Jefferson  was  a  temperamental  expansionist.  He 
wished  to  annex  Cuba,  to  annex  or  purchase  the  Flor- 
idas  from  Spain;  and  indeed,  got  into  trouble  with  temperamental 
Spain  in  consequence.  During  the  periods  when  war  exPan81onist- 
with  Britain  loomed  on  the  horizon,  he  repeatedly 
expressed  the  hope  that  the  acquisition  of  Canada 
would  be  the  first  result,  if  war  had  to  come. 

A  further  curious  instance  of  inconsistency  in  the 
great  democrat  is  in  the  fact  that  Jefferson's  plan  for 
the  government  of  the  Louisiana  Territory  was  wholly   Paradox  in  the 

,  ..  n  .1        -n        •  i       •     .1  imperialistic  plan 

autocratic,  conferring  on  the  President  the  powers  for  governing 
previously  held  by  the  King  of  Spain,  and  providing  territories. 
for  no  self-government  by  the  population.  Jeffer- 
son's followers  defended  this,  on  the  ground  that  the 
States  owned  the  Territories  and  could  do  with  them 
as  they  pleased :  an  amazing  reversion  to  that  British 
view  of  the  Colonies,  which  fomented  the  Revolution! 
Our  history,  of  course,  is  full  of  such  inconsistencies, 
as  notably,  the  limiting  of  "all  men",  in  the  Declara- 
tion of  Independence,  to  white  men,  in  its  application, 
excluding  Indians,  negroes  and  women.  Fortunately, 
Jefferson's  plan  was  modified,  in  its  adoption,  and 


164 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Jefferson  a 
personal  executive. 


Eager 

continuation   of 
his  cultural 
interests   amid 
harassing 
presidential 
cares. 


Significant 
illustration 
in  the  letters 
to  Dr.  Priestley. 


Jefferson's   view 
of    the    moral 
teaching  of  Jesus. 


soon  replaced  by  one  more  in  harmony  with  his  life- 
long principles. 

As  President,  Jefferson  exercised  personal  domina- 
tion and  direction  in  all  this  complicated  range  of 
problems  with  which  he  had  to  deal.  He  found  time, 
however,  to  continue  his  cultural  activities:  writing 
thoughtful  letters  on  scientific,  medical  and  educa- 
tional questions.  A  culminating  example  is  in  the 
correspondence  with  Dr.  Priestley,  which  also  shows 
well  Jefferson's  earnest  and  liberal  religious  attitude. 

Dr.  Priestley  sent  Jefferson,  in  1803,  a  brief  com- 
parative study  of  Socrates  and  Jesus.  Jefferson  wrote, 
expressing  his  pleasure,  and  urging  a  wider  compari- 
son with  the  ancient  philosophers,  saying  that  he  had 
thought  of  writing  something  of  the  kind  and  even 
sketched  the  outlines  in  his  mind : 

"I  should  first  take  a  general  view  of  the  moral  doc- 
trines of  the  most  remarkable  of  the  ancient  philoso- 
phers. *  *  *  I  should  do  justice  to  the  branches  of 
morality  they  have  treated  well.  *  *  *  I  should  pro- 
ceed to  a  view  of  the  life,  character,  and  doctrines  of 
Jesus.  *  *  *  His  system  of  morality  was  the  most  be- 
nevolent and  sublime  probably  that  has  been  ever  taught, 
and  consequently  more  perfect  than  those  of  any  of  the 
ancient  philosophers.  His  character  and  doctrines  have 
received  still  greater  injury  from  those  who  pretend  to 
be  his  special  disciples,  and  who  have  disfigured  and  so- 
phisticated his  actions  and  precepts,  from  views  of  per- 
sonal interest,  so  as  to  induce  the  unthinking  part  of 
mankind  to  throw  off  the  whole  system  in  disgust,  and  to 
pass  sentence  as  an  impostor  on  the  most  innocent,  the 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON 


165 


most  benevolent,  the  most  eloquent  and  sublime  charac- 
ter that  ever  has  been  exhibited  to  man."* 

Evidencing  how  deeply  the  subject  was  in  his  mind,  DotJe^further 

ten  days  later  he  wrote  to  Edward  Dowse,  returning  comparing  the 

a  sermon  by  Mr.  Bennet,  and  referring  to  Dr.  Priest-  philosophers 
ley's  pamphlet.    Of  the  ancient  philosophers,  he  said : 

"Their  philosophy  went  chiefly  to  the  government  of 
our  passions,  so  far  as  respected  ourselves,  and  the  pro- 
curing our  own  tranquility.  In  our  duties  to  others 
they  were  short  and  deficient.  They  extended  their  cares 
scarcely  beyond  our  kindred  and  friends  individually, 
and  our  country  in  the  abstract.  Jesus  embraced  with 
charity  and  philanthropy  our  neighbors,  our  country- 
men, and  the  whole  family  of  mankind.  They  confined 
themselves  to  actions ;  he  pressed  his  sentiments  into  the 
region  of  our  thoughts,  and  called  for  purity  at  the 
fountain  head."  f 

January  29th,  1804,  Jefferson  writes  again  to  Dr. 
Priestley,  expressing  his  satisfaction  that  the  larger 
comparison  is  to  be  carried  out;  then  turning  to  the 
significance  of  the  Louisiana  Purchase,  and  conclud- 
ing: 


"Have  you  seen  the  new  work  of  Malthus  on  popula- 
tion? It  is  one  of  the  ablest  I  have  ever  seen.  Although 
his  main  object  is  to  delineate  the  effects  of  redundancy 
of  population,  and  to  test  the  poor  laws  of  England, 
and  other  palliations  for  that  evil,  several  important 


Just  appreciation 
of   the   great 
work  of  Malthus, 
then  appearing. 


*  Jefferson,  in  letter  to  Dr.  Priestley,  April  9th,  1803: 
Vol.  X,  pp.  374,  375. 

f  Jefferson,  in  letter  to  Edward  Dowse,  April  19th,  1803: 
Vol.  X,  p.  377. 


Writings, 
Writings, 


166 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  literary  and 

philosophic 

statesman. 


Why  Jefferson 
accepted  a 
second  term. 


Circumstances 
of  his  election. 


The   second 
Inaugural. 


Bad  results 
from  the 
overwhelming 
majority. 


questions  in  political  economy,  allied  to  his  subject  in- 
cidentally, are  treated  with  a  masterly  hand."  * 

Truly  Jefferson  was  the  most  many-sided  in  cul- 
tivation of  all  our  great  leaders,  pursuing  his  intel- 
lectual interests,  with  unflagging  zeal,  to  the  end  of 
his  days. 

Jefferson's  fame  as  President  would  have  been 
greater  had  he  declined  a  second  term.  He  had  op- 
posed, on  principle,  the  re-eligibility  of  the  president; 
but  had  urged  Washington  to  accept  a  second  term, 
for  the  good  of  the  country.  Feeling  that  a  second 
term  was  needed  to  complete  his  work,  justify  his 
policies  and  answer  Federalist  criticisms,  he  decided 
to  follow  Washington's  example.  He  was  over- 
whelmingly elected,  receiving  162  out  of  176  electoral 
votes:  one  of  the  greatest  victories  in  the  history  of 
American  political  parties.  It  looked  as  if  he  had 
really  achieved  his  aim  of  uniting  the  whole  people 
behind  him.  His  second  Inaugural  Address  was  a 
pean  of  triumph,  reviewing  the  achievement  of  the 
program  laid  down  in  the  first  address. 

The  very  size  of  his  majority  meant  trouble,  how- 
ever. When  a  political  party  goes  into  power  with 
too  large  a  majority,  usually  the  party  splits  behind 
its  leaders:  which  should  comfort  the  defeated!  This 
is  what  happened  to  Jefferson :  the  new  recruits  quar- 
reling with  the  older  members  of  the  party.  Then, 
too,  there  were  exasperating  foreign  complications; 


*  Jefferson,   in   letter   to  Dr.   Priestley,   Jan.   29th,    1804: 
Vol.  X,  pp.  447,  448. 


Writings, 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  167 

and  Jefferson  met  these  with  a  vacillating  weakness, 
strikingly  in  contrast  with  the  firm  attitude  of  his 
first  administration. 

To  understand  this,  one  must  remember  that  Jef- 
ferson had  one  obsession.    Believing  that  no  genera-  Jefferson's 
tion  has  the  right  to  bind  any  subsequent  one,  he  was  regarding  the 
opposed  to  any  funding  of  the  national  debt,  which  national  debt' 
would  extend  the  time  of  payment  beyond  the  life  of 
the  generation  incurring  the  debt.    This  helps  explain 
his  opposition  to  Hamilton's  program.    Now  in  this, 
without  much  argument  it  may  be  said,  Jefferson 
was  simply  wrong.     A  legitimate  national  debt  is 
merely  a  mortgage  on  the  national  farm.     If  one 
buys  a  farm  for  forty  thousand  dollars,  giving  a  ten 
thousand  dollar  purchase  money  mortgage,  and  dies 
before  the  mortgage  is  paid;  if  one's  heir  accepts  the 
farm,  it  is  only  right  he  should  assume  the  mortgage. 
Of  course,  a  farm  mortgaged  beyond  its  value  is  an  What  a 
undesirable  inheritance;  and  a  national  debt  that  ap-  legitimate 

x       national    debt 

proximates  the  national  wealth  is  a  hideous  monstros-  really  signifies. 
ity;  but  a  legitimate  debt  is  merely  the  mortgage  on 
the  national  wealth  handed  on  to  the  next  generation. 
Those  who  fought  through  the  Revolutionary  War 
and  achieved  independence  did  it  not  only  for  them- 
selves, but  for  all  subsequent  generations  of  Ameri- 
cans. They  gave  freely  their  blood  and  treasure,  and 
borrowed  money  wherever  they  could  get  it,  to  pull 
the  struggle  through  to  victory.  Is  it  not  right  that 
subsequent  generations  inheriting  the  country,  its 
painfully    achieved    freedom,    its    institutions    and 


168 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Effects  of 
Jefferson's 
extreme  pacifism 
during  his 
second  term. 


wealth,  should  share  In  the  payment  of  the  debt,  in- 
curred for  the  good  of  all? 

Jefferson  did  not  see  this;  and  therefore  he  was 
obsessed  with  the  desire  to  pay  off  the  national  debt 
before  going  out  of  office  as  President.  To  achieve 
this,  he  must  not  have  a  foreign  war,  or  the  debt  would 
be  greater  than  when  he  assumed  office.  Well,  the 
Napoleonic  wars  were  drawing  out  their  devastating 
length  in  Europe.  Hatred  was  increasing  on  every 
hand.  England  was  issuing  Orders  in  Council,  claim- 
ing the  right  to  search  our  ships  and  take  out  what- 
ever she  chose  to  declare  contraband,  impressing  our 
seamen  into  her  service.  She  forbade  us  to  trade  with 
the  continent  of  Europe,  from  the  Mediterranean  to 
the  North  Sea,  on  penalty  of  confiscation  of  our  ships 
and  cargoes.  Napoleon  retaliated,  forbidding  us  to 
trade  with  Britain,  on  the  same  penalty.  Spain  ob- 
serving, said,  "Well,  if  they  can  do  it,  why  can't  we?" 
We  were  slapped  on  one  cheek,  then  on  the  other,  then 
in  the  mouth;  and  Jefferson  did  nothing.  Had  he 
assumed  a  firm  attitude,  it  might  have  meant  war; 
but  he  would  have  had  the  whole  people  with  him. 
As  it  was,  to  avoid  any  chance  of  increasing  the  na- 
tional debt,  and  with  a  growing  belief  in  peace  at  any 
The  Embargo  Act.  price>  he  submitted.  Finally,  in  the  last  period  of  his 
administration,  the  Embargo  Act  was  rushed  through 
Congress,  forbidding  American  ships  to  leave  port: 
a  cowardly  device  to  prevent  their  search  and  seizure 
and  the  impressing  of  their  seamen!  Early  in  the 
World  War,  you  remember,  there  were  leaders  weak 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  169 

enough  to  propose  similar  cowardly  measures  to  keep 
us  out  of  war :  rather  inconsistent  with  national  self- 
respect,  do  you  not  think? 

New  England,  whence  the  ships  mainly  sailed,  was 
furious  over  the  Embargo  law.    "What,"  the  sea  cap-  Resentment  in 
tains  said,  "Are  they  not  our  ships?    Have  we  not  the  anTfirsf  an 
right  to  risk  them,  if  we  wish?    Are  our  sailors  not  the  "Federal  °f 
free  men,  with  the  right  to  earn  their  living  and  risk  authority. 
their  freedom,  if  they  choose?"    Please  note  that  the 
earliest  challenging  of  the  authority  of  the  Federal 
Government,   and  affirmation  of  the  rights  of  the 
States  over  against  that  Government,  came  not  from 
the  South,  but  from  New  England :  that  will  be  made 
more  clear  when  we  come  to  Robert  E.  Lee. 

The  result  of  all  this  was  that  Jefferson  left  office 
deeply  humiliated,  but  with  the  heart  of  the  people  Refusal  of  a 
still  with  him.     The  legislatures  of  five  states  urged  ^turn*6™  and 
him  to  run  for  a  third  term;   but  Jefferson  refused,  Monticeiio  at 
thus  establishing  the  tradition,  founded  by  Washing- 
ton, of  only  two  terms  for  any  President :  a  tradition, 
as  has  been  said,  never  since  successfully  challenged 
by  any  man.    Jefferson  returned  home,  at  the  age  of 
sixty-six,  resuming  his  life  at  Monticeiio.    His  imme- 
diate successors  in  office  were  his  friends  and  neigh- 
bors, Madison  and  Monroe,  who  constantly  consulted 
him,  carried  on  his  policies  and  continued  his  influ- 
ence. 

The  last  long  period  of  Jefferson's  life  was  spent 
largely  in  realizing  a  part  of  his  cherished  educational 
program,  through  founding  the  University  of  Vir- 


sixty-six. 


170 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  successful 
fight  to 
establish   the 
University  of 
Virginia. 


Jefferson's 
service   as 
architect   and 
Rector   of   the 
University. 


View  of  life 
in  old  age. 
The   letter   to 
John  Adams. 


ginia.  It  was  a  ten-year  fight.  Finally,  the  Act  was 
passed  in  1819,  and  the  University  established,  with 
Jefferson  as  Rector.  It  never  had  a  president,  until 
about  twenty  years  ago,  when  yielding  to  the  auto- 
cratic tendency  in  education  of  the  time,  it  took  a 
president  and  became  an  ordinary  university. 

Jefferson  was  the  architect  of  the  buildings,  plan- 
ning them  on  beautiful  classic  lines :  the  simple  quad- 
rangles of  stately  arcades,  with  student  rooms  be- 
hind, and  here  and  there  a  more  impressive  structure 
rising.  It  was  a  very  inexpensive  plan,  but  probably 
the  most  beautiful  series  of  academic  buildings  then 
in  America,  and  in  dignified  simplicity  and  majestic 
harmony,  one  of  the  most  satisfying  ever  erected  on 
American  soil. 

The  curriculum  Jefferson  planned  on  liberal  elect- 
ive lines.  The  University  had  one  of  the  first  self- 
governing  student  bodies  in  America.  The  whole 
organization  was  singularly  modern.  In  other  words, 
Jefferson  inaugurated,  at  the  University  of  Virginia, 
many  of  those  reforms  carried  out,  three  quarters  of 
a  century  later,  at  Harvard  and  elsewhere  in  the 
North,  and  then  regarded  as  novelties.  Once  more, 
how  far-visioned  Jefferson  was,  as  educator  as  well 
as  political  philosopher! 

In  many  letters,  Jefferson  expressed  his  relief  at 
being  free  from  the  anxious  cares  of  active  political 
life.  The  serene  and  mellowed  attitude  of  his  later 
years  is  well  expressed  in  a  letter  to  John  Adams, 
written  at  seventy-three,  a  decade  before  his  death: 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  171 

"You  ask,  if  I  would  agree  to  live  my  seventy  or 
rather  seventy-three  years  over  again?  To  which  I 
say,  yea.  I  think  with  you,  that  it  is  a  good  world  on 
the  whole;  that  it  has  been  framed  on  a  principle  of 
benevolence,  and  more  pleasure  than  pain  dealt  out  to 
us.  There  are,  indeed  (who  might  say  nay),  gloomy 
and  hypochondriac  minds,  inhabitants  of  diseased  bod- 
ies, disgusted  with  the  present,  and  despairing  of  the 
future;  always  counting  that  the  worst  will  happen, 
because  it  may  happen.  To  these  I  say,  how  much 
pain  have  cost  us  the  evils  which  have  never  happened! 
My  temperament  is  sanguine.  I  steer  my  bark  with 
Hope  in  the  head,  leaving  Fear  astern.  My  hopes,  in- 
deed, sometimes  fail;  but  not  oftener  than  the  forebod- 
ings of  the  gloomy.  There  are,  I  acknowledge,  even  in 
the  happiest  life,  some  terrible  convulsions,  heavy  setoffs 
against  the  opposite  page  of  the  account.  I  have  often 
wondered  for  what  good  end  the  sensation  of  grief  could 
be  intended.  All  our  other  passions,  within  proper 
bounds,  have  an  useful  object.  And  the  perfection  of 
the  moral  character  is,  not  in  a  stoical  apathy,  so  hypo- 
critically vaunted,  and  so  untruly  too,  because  impossi- 
ble, but  in  a  just  equilibrium  of  all  the  passions.  I  wish 
the  pathologists  then  would  tell  us  what  is  the  use  of 
grief  in  the  economy,  and  of  what  good  it  is  the  cause, 
proximate  or  remote."* 

Meantime,  Jefferson's  financial  affairs  were  in  in- 
creasingly desperate  condition.     We  have  seen  vari-  Reasons  for 

n         ,  i  •  x   no  5i  i  i?  the    collapse 

ous  causes  for  this:    Jetiersons  long  absences  from   0f  Jefferson's 
home  in  his  service  of  the  country,  the  ravaging  of  his   fortunes. 
estates  during  the  Revolution,  the  multiplied  payment 

*  Jefferson,   in   letter   to  John   Adams,  Monticello,   April   8th,    1816: 
Writings,  Vol.  VI,  pp.  575,  576. 


172 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Jefferson's 
sale   of  his 
great  library. 


The  gift  that 
enabled  Jefferson 
to  close  his 
life  at 
Monticello. 


of  the  heavy  mortgage  on  his  father-in-law's  lands; 
but  there  was  a  further  cause.  After  Washington's 
death,  Jefferson  was  the  most  eminent  man  in  Amer- 
ica, recognized  as  such  all  over  the  world.  After  his 
retirement  from  the  presidency,  a  countless  stream  of 
guests  came  to  Monticello,  from  North,  South,  West 
and  from  all  over  Europe.  Jefferson  entertained 
them  with  the  old  lavish  hospitality;  and  they  liter- 
ally ate  and  drank  him  out  of  house  and  home!  His 
debts  accumulated  so  that  he  was  finally  compelled 
to  sacrifice  his  beloved  library.  Think  what  that 
meant :  a  natural  student  and  devoted  lover  of  books, 
all  his  long  life  he  had  been  gathering  together  this 
splendid  collection ;  and  now  he  had  to  let  it  go.  To 
keep  it  together,  he  sold  it  to  Congress,  which  gave 
him  the  miserly  sum  of  twenty-three  thousand  nine 
hundred  and  fifty  dollars  for  it:  about  half  what  it 
would  probably  have  brought  at  public  auction.  This 
amount  proved  only  a  slight  alleviation,  paying  but 
a  part  of  the  growing  debts.  He  turned  over  the  run- 
ning of  his  estates  to  a  grandson,  hoping  for  better 
results.  Friends  in  other  states  raised  a  purse  of  six- 
teen thousand  five  hundred  dollars,  and  presented  it 
to  him,  which  prevented  his  having  to  leave  Monti- 
cello. After  his  death,  his  daughter  was  compelled  to 
leave,  and  the  estate  was  sold  for  about  ten  thousand 
dollars.  Just  now,  there  is  a  nation-wide  movement 
on  to  buy  it  back,  as  a  national  monument,  for  a  half 
million  dollars;  and  yet  we  sometimes  think  we  are 
a  practical  people! 


4th,    1826. 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON  173 

Jefferson,  therefore,  died  at  Monticello  at  the  age 
of  eighty-three,  and  strangely  enough,  on  the  Fourth  Death,  July 
of  July,  1826:  interesting,  that  he  should  have  died 
on  the  birthday  of  the  nation,  the  anniversary  of  the 
day  when  his  great  Declaration  of  Independence  was 
adopted  by  the  Continental  Congress,  and  the  new 
nation  brought  into  being.  Still  more  remarkable, 
Jefferson's  life-long  associate,  friend  and  rival,  John 
Adams,  died  the  same  day  in  Massachusetts ;  and  al- 
most the  last  words  of  John  Adams  were,  "Thomas 
Jefferson  still  survives" ;  but  Jefferson  had  died,  a  few 
hours  earlier,  at  Monticello. 

He  wrote  his  own  epitaph.  It  is  inscribed  on  the 
simple  monument,  that  stands  in  the  enclosure,  beside 
the  road,  as  you  climb  the  slope  of  Monticello.  It 
reads : 


Significance  of 


"Here  was  buried 
THOMAS  JEFFERSON, 

Author  of  the  Declaration  of  American  Independence,        Jefferson's 

of  the  Statute   of  Virginia   for   religious   freedom   and        self-written 

.  ...  epitaph. 

Father  of  the  University  of  Virginia." 

That  was  all :  no  word  about  his  two  terms  as  Pres- 
ident, the  Louisiana  Purchase,  his  service  as  Ambas-   „     . 

Services   by 

sador,  Secretary  of  State  and  Vice  President.    "Au-  winch  he  wished 

TO    ViP     "TPTY1  PTT1  r)GT*CO 

thor  of  the  Declaration  of  American  Independence" : 
the  great  charter  of  our  liberties,  through  which  the 
independent  nation  was  born;  "of  the  Statute  of  Vir- 
ginia for  religious  freedom",  making  him  the  father 
of  American  religious  liberty;  and  "Father  of  the 
University  of  Virginia":    the  first  American  states- 


174 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Summary   of 
Jefferson    and 
his  career. 


Present  day 
significance   of 
Jefferson's  ideas. 


Principles    on 
which    depends 
the   soul  of 
democracy. 


man  to  recognize  fully  the  responsibility  of  the  State 
in  the  education  of  the  citizen,  under  democracy: 
those  were  the  three  achievements  by  which  he  wished 
to  be  remembered. 

Like  Washington,  six  feet  two  inches  tall,  of  ro- 
bust and  enduring  physical  constitution,  with  red 
hair,  a  firm,  sensitive  face,  and  thin,  rather  compressed 
lips;  the  most  many-sided  in  cultivation  of  all  our 
great  men,  an  aristocrat  in  manner,  Jefferson  was  a 
born  leader,  always  close  to  the  heart  of  the  people, 
and  the  philosopher  of  democracy  for  all  time.  Foun- 
der of  our  longest-lived  political  party,  through  the 
Louisiana  purchase  virtual  creator  of  our  greater 
America,  father  of  our  religious  freedom,  idealist  in 
political  philosophy,  Jefferson  stands  for  just  that 
range  of  ideas  that  most  need  re-emphasis  at  the  pres- 
ent hour.  Today,  when  the  World  War  has  left  us 
with  vastly  increased  tendencies  toward  centralization 
and  paternalism  in  government,  when  the  popular 
mind  is  obsessed  with  the  idea  of  multiplied  legisla- 
tion as  the  certain  cure  for  all  moral  and  social  ills, 
we  particularly  need  to  return  to  the  great  ideas  of 
Thomas  Jefferson :  freedom  of  speech  and  press,  free- 
dom in  religion,  freedom  of  person  and  conduct :  prin- 
ciples for  which  we  must  ever  fight,  if  we  are  to  keep 
the  soul  of  democracy  in  our  great,  ever  more  power- 
ful, more  highly  organized,  centralized  and  authori- 
tative Republic. 


IV 

HAMILTON,  AND  THE  MAKING 
OF  OUR  GOVERNMENT 

IF  WASHINGTON,  more  than  any  other  lead- 
er, made  possible  an  independent  nation  on  the 
American  continent,  it  was  Hamilton  who  called 
the  Convention  that  made  the  Constitution,  who  ini-   Hamilton  the 
tiated  and  fought  through  to  victory  the  great  meas-   ofrtthe  Federal 
ures  that  moulded  the  new  government  into  a  living,   Government. 
growing  organism.    Covered  with  abuse  and  calumny 
because  of  his  very  excellence  and  fighting  force,  ac- 
complishing his  great  work  by  sheer  power  of  intel- 
lect acting  on  the  leaders  of  his  time,  Hamilton  stands 
out  as  one  of  the  truly  great  statesmen  in  the  entire 
history  of  mankind. 

Hamilton  was  born  in  the  island  of  Nevis,  one  of 
the  lesser  West  Indies,  January  11th,  1757.    He  was  one  of  the 
thus  fourteen  years  younger  than  his  great  associate  Revolutionary 
and  rival,  Jefferson,  twenty-five  years  younger  than  leaders- 
Washington,  and  fifty-one  years  younger  than  Ben- 
jamin Franklin,  who  as  we  have  seen,  was  the  patri- 
arch of  the  Revolution. 

Nevis  is  a  small  island,  with  about  fifty  square  miles  The  l9lan(i 
of  territory,  rising  over  a  plateau  to  a  volcanic  cone,  Hamilton's 
about  three  thousand  feet  above  the  sea.    The  West  birthplace. 

175 


176 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Relations  of  the 
West  Indies  to 
the  mainland. 


Hamilton  devoted 
to   the   American 
cause  from  its 
inception. 


Indies,  as  has  been  said,  were  well  in  advance  of  the 
mainland  in  civilization.  The  luxuriant  soil,  tropical 
climate,  early  introduction  of  Negro  slavery,  and  the 
wide  European  demand  for  the  great  staples  pro- 
duced in  the  Islands,  sugar,  molasses  and  rum,  de- 
veloped prosperity  at  an  early  day.  The  planters 
lived  in  stately  homes,  with  beautiful  grounds  about 
them,  and  imitated  the  manners  of  continental 
Europe. 

The  relation  of  the  islands  to  the  mainland  was, 
moreover,  much  closer  than  at  a  later  day.  The  easy 
and  natural  means  of  travel  and  transportation  was 
by  water.  It  was  easier  to  go  from  the  West  Indies 
to  Virginia  or  Massachusetts,  than  to  go,  by  land, 
from  Massachusetts  to  Virginia.  Trade  with  the 
mainland  was  thus  constant  and  intercourse  close. 
The  island  Colonies  of  Britain  had,  further,  to  meet 
just  the  same  neglect  and  tyranny,  on  the  part  of  the 
home  government,  as  those  upon  the  continent.  Ham- 
ilton was  a  child  of  eight  when  the  Stamp  Act  was 
passed.  There  were  on  Nevis  and  other  islands,  the 
same  scenes  of  public  meetings  of  protest,  with  the 
seizing  and  burning  of  the  stamped  papers,  as  oc- 
curred on  the  mainland. 

These  facts  are  mentioned  merely  to  indicate  that 
Hamilton  had  every  right  to  feel,  as  he  did  feel,  that 
he  was  born  an  American,  as  completely  as  if  he  had 
been  born  on  the  mainland.  He  had  no  sense  of  be- 
ing apart,  and  was  a  whole-hearted  patriot,  devoted 
to  the  American  cause  from  the  beginning. 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  177 

Behind  the  birth  of  Hamilton  is  a  most  interesting 
romantic  story,  and  strange  to  say,  we  had  to  wait  for 
a  novelist  to  clear  it  up  for  us  with  scholarly  accuracy. 
Until  Gertrude  Atherton  went  to  the  islands,  exam- 
ined every  oldest  inhabitant,  looked  up  all  the  mould-  AtherWs 
ering  records  and  published  her  results,  the  biogra-  service.in 

.  ascertaining 

phers  and  historians  were  very  hazy  and  uncertain  re-  Hamilton's 
garding  that  story.  Since  Gertrude  Atherton  made 
her  thorough  investigation,  her  results  have  been  ac- 
cepted as  scholarly  and  accurate  by  subsequent  writ- 
ers, notably  by  Hamilton's  grandson,  Allan  McLane 
Hamilton,  who  published  in  1910  his  Intimate  Life 
of  Alexander  Hamilton,  giving  Miss  Atherton  full 
credit.  Hamilton's  own  letters,  moreover,  are  en- 
tirely consistent  with  the  facts  as  now  established,  and 
show  that  he  was  fully  aware  of  the  circumstances  of 
his  birth  and  ancestry.  The  romantic  story  deserves 
brief  retelling. 

Hamilton's  maternal  grandfather  was  Dr.  John 
Fawcett,  of  French  Huguenot  family:  the  name  be- 
ing originally  Faucette,  which  he  had  changed  to  the  ^nS^and* 
English  pronounciation  and  spelling.  It  is  worth  father. 
remembering  that  Hamilton  had  French  blood:  it 
helps  to  explain  certain  characteristics  of  his  temper- 
ament. Dr.  Fawcett  bought  land,  became  a  fairly 
wealthy  planter,  married  a  young  English  girl,  and 
lived  in  a  great  house  on  his  country  estate,  associ- 
ating with  the  fashionable  society  of  Nevis.  There 
were  three  daughters,  two  of  whom  married  early. 
After  twenty  years  of  married  life,  the  wife  sought 


178  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

a  separation  from  her  husband;  and  taking  her 
youngest  daughter,  Rachel,  went  to  live  apart,  in  a 
property  she  possessed  on  the  neighboring  island  of 
St.  Kitts. 

Rachel    Fawcett    was    apparently    an    unusually 
Hamilton's  beautiful  and  gifted  girl,  finely  formed,  with  reddish 

mother.  fair  hair,  deep  gray  eyes,  vivacious  manner  and  an 

excellent  gentlewoman's  education.  At  sixteen,  she 
was  seemingly  pushed  by  her  mother  into  a  loveless 
marriage  with  a  wealthy  Dane,  John  Levine,  who 
had  come  over  to  the  Danish  island,  St.  Croix,  and 
seemed  a  desirable  match.  Levine  took  his  bride  and 
her  mother  to  Copenhagen ;  the  ladies  were  presented 
at  the  Danish  court;  then  the  mother  returned  to  St. 
Kitts,  and  a  little  later,  the  couple  to  live  on  St. 
Croix. 

The  circumstances  of  her  married  life  became  un- 
endurable to  Rachel,  however.  She  fled  suddenly 
from  her  husband's  home  to  her  mother  on  St.  Kitts. 
Her  family  connections  were  sufficiently  high,  so 
that  her  husband  was  unable  to  compel  her  return. 
When  the  child  of  the  union  was  born,  the  father 
claimed  and  reared  it.  Hamilton,  by  the  way,  in  one 
of  his  letters  to  his  wife,  probably  written  in  1782, 
speaks  of  "the  death  of  my  brother  Levine",  and  adds, 
"You  know  the  circumstances  that  abate  my  distress, 
yet  my  heart  acknowledges  the  rights  of  a  brother,"* 
proving  that  he  knew  all  about  the  connection.    John 


*  Hamilton,    Allan   McLane,   Intimate   Life   of   Alexander   Hamilton, 
p.  4. 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  179 

Levine  secured  some  sort  of  legal  separation  from  his 
wife,  which  did  not  permit  her  to  marry  again.  Her 
mother's  death  occurring  shortly,  Rachel  was  left, 
still  a  girl  of  nineteen,  living  alone  on  St.  Kitts,  in 
this  anomalous  situation,  neither  wife  nor  widow. 

There  came  to  the  island,  seeking  his  fortune  in 
the  new  world,  James  Hamilton,  younger  son  of  the 
great  Scotch  Hamilton  family,  affable,  handsome,  scotch  father. 
well  educated,  a  good  conversationalist.  He  and  Ra- 
chel Levine  came  to  love  each  other  very  deeply  and 
wished  to  marry.  She  could  not  obtain  a  divorce, 
however,  except  by  act  of  Parliament;  and  Parlia- 
ment was  too  far  away,  and  she  was  without  the 
requisite  influence.  The  two  young  persons  decided, 
therefore,  to  accept  the  fact  of  marriage  and  unite 
their  lives,  since  they  could  not  overcome  all  the  legal 
obstacles.  Under  the  circumstances  and  ethics  of  the 
time,  it  should  probably  be  regarded  as  a  common  law  circumstances 
marriage,  since  it  was  accepted  as  a  permanent  life  ^J^i  LeXe°and 
union  on  both  sides.  They  went  to  live  on  Rachel's  James  Hamilton. 
inherited  property  in  the  island  of  Nevis;  and  while 
there  was  some  criticism,  the  families  of  the  two  young 
persons  stood  by  them  loyally;  and  they  were  soon 
accepted  in  the  best  society  of  the  islands.  Two  chil- 
dren were  born  of  this  union :  Alexander  Hamilton  in 
1757,  as  we  have  seen,  and  his  brother,  James,  five 
years  later. 

The  father,  however,  with  all  his  education  and 
charm  of  manner,  seems  to  have  been  one  of  those 
men  who  are  unable  to  find  satisfactory  business  ad- 


180 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


James  Hamilton's 
business  failures. 


Death  of  his 
mother  when 
Hamilton  was 
but  eleven. 


Hamilton's   later 
relations  with  his 
father  and  family. 


justment  in  life.  He  was  unsuccessful  in  one  posi- 
tion after  another.  Finally,  his  devoted  wife  sold 
her  inherited  property  and  gave  him  her  whole  cap- 
ital to  start  in  business  independently.  He  took  it, 
and  failed  again,  making  his  family  penniless.  Lyt- 
ton,  the  husband  of  one  of  Rachel's  sisters,  gave  him 
a  manager's  position  on  an  estate  in  St.  Croix,  whither 
the  family  removed.  In  this  work,  also,  he  was  not 
successful;  and  when  his  son,  Alexander,  was  a  boy 
of  nine,  James  Hamilton  left  for  St.  Vincent,  hoping 
to  better  his  condition.  He  was  able  to  earn  but  a 
meager  salary ;  and  Rachel  took  her  two  children  and 
went  to  live  in  the  home  of  her  sister,  Mrs.  Lytton. 
She  was  too  proud,  too  sensitive,  however,  to  endure 
the  situation  of  her  life:  she  had  suffered  bitterly 
under  the  anomalous  circumstances  of  her  marriage 
anyway;  and  when  she  was  but  thirty-two  and  her 
son,  Alexander,  a  lad  of  eleven,  she  died. 

Hamilton  was  thus  left,  at  eleven,  practically  doub- 
ly orphaned;  for  it  is  doubtful  if  he  ever  saw  his 
father  again.  In  his  later  life,  when  Hamilton  had 
become  famous  in  our  country,  he  wrote  affectionate 
letters  to  his  father  and  brother  in  the  islands,  send- 
ing gifts  of  money,  and  urging  the  father  to  come 
to  New  York  and  spend  his  last  years  with  his  son 
there.  The  father  had  agreed  to  do  so;  but  frail 
health  and  warfare  on  the  sea  postponed  this,  and 
he  died  in  St.  Vincent,  with  the  plan  unfulfilled.  In 
his  later  years,  Hamilton  also  sent  money  to  his 
aunts,  who  were  then  in  reduced  circumstances.  From 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  181 

the  age  of  eleven,  however,  Hamilton  was  thrown 
upon  his  own  resources.  He  could,  of  course,  con- 
tinue to  live  in  the  home  of  his  aunt;  but  he  had  his 
mother's  pride  and  sensitiveness,  and  wished  to  sup- 
port himself. 

From  his  mother,  Hamilton  had  acquired  an  excel- 
lent speaking  and  reading  knowledge  of  French, 
which  was  a  great  asset  to  him  later  on.  Rev.  Hugh  ar  y  e 
Knox,  recognizing  the  boy's  precocious  intellect,  had 
already  tutored  him  in  certain  of  the  conventional 
academic  subjects.  Hamilton  was,  moreover,  a  born 
student,  with  a  richly  gifted  and  intensely  active 
mind.  He  was  already  reading  widely  and  deeply 
in  history  and  allied  fields,  and  he  continued  an  eager 
student  all  his  life. 

At  twelve,  Hamilton  went  to  work  in  the  general 
store  of  Nicholas  Cruger,  doing  the  ordinary  tasks 
of  a  clerkship  and  casting  up  accounts.  He  did  not 
like  the  work,  but  it  must  have  been  excellent  train-  Work  in  the 

store  of  Nicholas 

ing  for  his  subsequent  career.  It  was  done  so  faith-  Cruger  from 
fully,  however,  that  when,  the  following  year,  Nicho- 
las Cruger  was  called  to  the  mainland,  for  some 
months'  time,  he  left  this  boy  of  thirteen  in  entire 
charge  of  the  business,  during  his  absence:  a  signal 
tribute  to  the  fidelity  and  thoroughness  with  which 
Hamilton  fulfilled  the  tasks  assigned  him. 

So  his  life  went  on  to  the  age  of  fifteen.  That 
year,  one  of  those  terrible  hurricanes  that  frequently 
devastate  the  West  Indies  swept  the  island.  St. 
Croix  suffered  frightful  loss  of  life  and  property. 


182 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Hamilton's 
account  of  the 
hurricane. 


To  the  mainland 
for  a  college 
education. 


In  the  preparatory 
school   at  Eliza- 
bethtown,   New 
Jersey, 


Circumstances 
of  entering 
King's  College, 
New  York  City. 


The  young  Hamilton  wrote  an  account  of  the  dis- 
aster, which  was  published  in  a  newspaper  in  St. 
Kitts,  and  received  much  favorable  comment.  It  was, 
indeed,  a  remarkable  literary  production  for  a  youth 
of  fifteen.  It  awakened  his  relatives  to  recognize 
that  he  had  too  good  a  mind  to  spend  his  life  in  an 
island  clerkship;  and  they  raised  enough  money  to 
send  him  to  the  mainland  for  a  college  education. 

Still  under  sixteen,  Hamilton  sailed  for  Boston, 
landed  at  that  port,  made  his  way  to  New  York  and 
into  the  edge  of  New  Jersey,  and  entered  a  second- 
ary school,  at  Elizabethtown,  to  complete  his  prepa- 
ration for  college.  His  high  family  connections  gave 
him  letters  of  introduction  to  certain  eminent  New 
York  and  New  Jersey  statesmen;  and  these  recog- 
nized at  once  his  intellectual  ability  and  promise.  In 
fact,  during  his  period  in  the  secondary  school,  Ham- 
ilton lived  in  the  home  of  one  of  the  prominent  New 
Jersey  political  leaders,  Elias  Boudinot. 

After  a  few  months,  he  felt  himself  ready  for  col- 
lege, and  wished  to  enter  Princeton.  He  had  limited 
funds,  and  knew  that  he  could  study  intensely  and 
rapidly;  so  apparently  he  asked  the  Princeton  au- 
thorities if  they  would  let  him  go  through  as  fast  as 
he  could.  Well,  there  were  pedants  and  martinets  in 
those  days,  just  as  there  are  today:  one  wonders  why 
a  college  student  must  do  time,  after  he  has  done  all 
the  work;  but  it  was  so  then  and  it  is  so  now.  The 
Princeton  authorities  refused,  saying  he  must  go 
through  in  conventional  fashion.    Hamilton  therefore 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  183 

turned  his  back  on  Princeton,  and  tried  King's  Col- 
lege, New  York  City,  the  germ  from  which  Colum- 
bia University  has  developed.  King's  College  had  a 
Tory  president  and  two  professors:  very  different 
from  the  vast  educational  machine,  Columbia  Uni- 
versity has  become  today.  This  small  faculty  was 
quite  willing  Hamilton  should  go  through  as  fast  as 
possible;  so  he  entered  King's  College. 

He  remained  in  college  hardly  two  years,  leaving  to  Hamilton's 
join  the  army  of  the  Revolution;  but  do  not  imagine  education. 
he  did  only  two  years'  work.  With  his  precocious, 
awakened  intellect,  he  was  reading  with  passionate 
eagerness  in  the  fields  of  history,  government  and 
statesmanship.  Then,  too,  leaving  college  did  not 
close  his  student  years:  he  continued  a  student  al- 
ways, becoming  one  of  the  best  educated  men  in 
America,  perhaps  in  the  world,  of  his  time. 

When  Hamilton  was  seventeen  and  a  half  years 
old,  a  mass  meeting  was  held  in  the  City  Hall  Park,   First  services  of 

^t         ^t     i         t-t        m  i  -.i  t  •  i  the  Revolution. 

New  York.  Hamilton  made  an  address,  which  cer- 
tain eminent  men  present  recognized  as  masterly; 
and  shared,  from  that  time,  the  expectation  of  a  great 
future  for  him. 

The  chief  method  of  influencing  public  opinion,  in 
those  days,  corresponding  to  our  use  of  newspapers  a  pamphleteering 
and  magazines,  was  by  issuing  pamphlets.  It  was  a  age* 
pamphleteering  age.  A  Rev.  Dr.  Seabury,  an  intense 
Tory,  issued  one,  severely  attacking  the  Continental 
Congress.  Hamilton,  not  yet  eighteen,  replied  with 
a  fourteen  thousand  word  pamphlet,  The  Continental 


184 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Hamilton's 
mature  ideas  of 
government  in  the 
pamphlets   issued 
at  seventeen  and 
eighteen. 


His  acceptance  of 
the  democratic 
conception   of 
government,  based 
on  the  theory  of 
the  rights  of  man. 


The  mob  at 
Dr.  Cooper's. 


Congress  Vindicated.  Dr.  Seabury  came  back  with 
Congress  Canvassed  by  a  Westchester  Farmer;  and 
again  Hamilton,  now  eighteen,  answered  with  a  long 
pamphlet,  equivalent  to  a  small  volume,  The  Farmer 
Refuted.  In  these  early  writings,  Hamilton  outlines 
his  permanent  philosophy  of  government,  evidencing 
the  precocity  of  his  intellectual  development.  At  the 
same  time,  these  pamphlets  show  how  completely  he 
had  accepted  the  prevalent  ideas  of  natural  rights,  on 
which  the  Revolution  proceeded.  Nothing  that  Jef- 
ferson wrote  in  the  Declaration  of  Independence  af- 
firms those  rights  more  clearly  than  the  following 
passage  from  The  Farmer  Refuted: 

"The  origin  of  all  civil  government,  justly  estah- 
lished,  must  be  a  voluntary  compact  between  the  rulers 
and  the  ruled,  and  must  be  liable  to  such  limitations  as 
are  necessary  for  the  security  of  the  absolute  rights  of 
the  latter;  for  what  original  title  can  any  man,  or  set 
of  men,  have  to  govern  others,  except  their  own  con- 
sent? To  usurp  dominion  over  a  people  in  their  own 
despite,  or  to  grasp  at  a  more  extensive  power  than  they 
are  willing  to  entrust,  is  to  violate  that  law  of  nature 
which  gives  every  man  a  right  to  his  personal  liberty, 
and  can  therefore  confer  no  obligation  to  obedience."* 

While  whole-heartedly  devoted  to  the  Revolution- 
ary cause,  Hamilton  deprecated  the  rioting  that  was 
taking  place.  For  instance,  Dr.  Cooper,  President 
of  King's  College,  was  an  intense  Tory;  and  there 
was  a  plot  to  mob  his  home.  Hamilton,  hearing  of 
the  plan,  proceeded  in  advance  of  the  mob  to  Dr. 


*  Hamilton,  in  The  Farmer  Refuted :     Works,  Vol.  I,  p.  63. 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  185 

Cooper's  dwelling,  mounted  the  steps,  and  when  the 
rioters  arrived,  addressed  them,  urging  them  to  ob- 
serve law  and  order.  Dr.  Cooper  stuck  his  head  out 
of  an  upstairs  window;  and  recognizing  who  was 
speaking,  but  not  hearing  the  words,  shrieked,  "Don't 
listen  to  that  fellow,  he's  crazy!"  Rather  grotesque: 
Hamilton  endeavoring  to  save  Dr.  Cooper's  life;  and 
Dr.  Cooper  responding  as  cited!  Hamilton  smiled, 
continued  speaking,  held  the  mob  till  Dr.  Cooper  got 
out  of  the  house  by  the  back  door,  was  rowed  out  to  a 
British  ship,  and  carried  to  England  and  safety:  En- 
gland where  he  should  have  stayed ! 

Again,  a  mob  out  of  Connecticut  attacked  Riving-  H  ..  ,  r 
ton's  Press,  which  had  published  Tory  pamphlets,  in  authoritative 
broke  up  the  presses  and  wrecked  the  establishment. 
Hamilton  wrote  a  letter  to  John  Jay,  member  of 
the  Continental  Congress,  vigorously  opposing  such 
methods  in  the  service  of  the  American  cause  and 
urging  that  rioters  be  punished. 

The  point  is :   Hamilton  believed,  temperamentally 
and  by  conviction,  in  law  and  order  first,  and  freedom   Temperamental 
afterwards.     Jefferson,  if  you  wish  the  initial  con-   Hamilton  and 
trast  between  the  two  men,  believed,  equally  by  tern-  Jefferson- 
perament  and  conviction,  in  freedom  first,  and  law 
and  order  afterwards.     Hamilton's  is  far  the  safer 
theory  of  society :  I  agree  with  Jefferson. 

Knowing  that  war  was  coming,  Hamilton  studied   Commissioned 
intensely  military  science;   and  when  the  New  York  Artillery Tn ° 
authorities  sanctioned  the  raising  of  armed  forces,  March>  1776- 
applied  for  a  commission  as  captain  of  artillery.    The 


186  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

authorities  were  surprised  at  this  stripling  of  nineteen 
wanting  to  be  a  captain  of  artillery;  and  put  him 
through  a  severe  examination,  which  he  passed  bril- 
liantly, proving  that  he  had  mastered  the  whole  field 
and  was  prepared  to  serve.  He  was  granted  his  com- 
mission the  same  week  that  Washington  caused  the 
British  evacuation  of  Boston. 

Hamilton  used  all  the  rest  of  the  money,  he  had 
been  given  for  his  college  education,  in  raising  and 
equipping  his  artillery  company ;  and  that  money  was 
never  paid  back  to  Hamilton,  nor  to  his  family  after 
his  death.  His  widow  did  receive,  in  her  necessity, 
payment  of  his  back  pay  as  officer;  but  these  funds, 
used  to  organize  and  equip  his  company,  were  never 
repaid. 

Hamilton  trained  his  men  so  thoroughly,  that  his 
The  service  of        company  was  one  of  the  few  entirely  dependable  ones 

Hamilton's  ,  .  it  t  i       TtT  -tt 

Company.  Washington  had,  early  m  the  War.     He  was  given 

the  rear  guard  service  in  the  retreat  across  the  river, 
after  the  battle  of  Long  Island.  He  was  at  Haarlem 
Heights,  where  apparently  Washington's  personal 
attention  was  first  called  to  him,  and  in  the  battle  of 
White  Plains.  He  accompanied  Washington  on  the 
retreat  across  New  Jersey ;  and  it  was  his  dependable 
company  that  had  again  and  again  the  rear  guard 
service,  in  crossing  one  and  another  of  those  New  Jer- 
sey rivers.  He  shared  in  the  victories  of  Trenton  and 
Princeton ;  and  when  these  won  for  Washington  that 
five  months'  breathing  space  at  Morristown,  he  asked 
Hamilton  to  give  up  his  commission  as  captain  of  ar- 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  187 

tillery,  take  a  position  on  Washington's  personal  staff, 
with  the  rank  of  colonel,  and  serve  as  Washington's 
secretary. 

Washington  may  have  been  partly  moved  to  this 
by  the  fact  that  he  had  already  recognized  Hamilton's  Washington 
brilliant  intellect  and  also  his  reckless  daring  in  the  togbecomThb°n 
field;   and  realizing  that  Hamilton  could  hardly  live   Secretary« 
very  long  if  he  remained  in  active  military  service, 
he  may  have  wished  to  save  this  great  mind  for  the 
nation's  need,  later  on.     Besides  this,  Washington, 
always  sensitive  about  the  defects  in  his  early  school- 
ing, wanted  someone  else  to  express  his  ideas  for  him* 
Those  ideas  had  come  to  entire  clearness:   Washing- 
ton knew  what  he  wished  to  say;  but  he  was  sensitive 
over  his  grammar,  spelling  and  style. 

Hamilton  did  not  wish  to  accept.     His  strongest 
ambition,  strange  to  say,  was  in  the  military  field.  His 
great  work  as  statesman  was  done  to  serve  the  nation's 
need,  from  a  sense  of  duty,  with  a  minimum  of  per- 
sonal ambition;  but  he  was  keenly  ambitious  in  his  The  four  years 
military  career.    Nevertheless,  he  accepted:  why?  Be-  Washington's 
cause  he  recognized  that  he  could  serve  the  country's  brain  and  V01ce' 
cause  best  that  way.     So  for  four  years,  Hamilton 
served  as  Washington's  brain,  voice  and  pen,  laboring 
incessantly,  writing  those  innumerable  letters  to  the 
Continental  Congress,  to  generals  in  the  field,  to  com- 
manders of  the  opposing  armies,  to  statesmen  through- 
out the  colonies. 

The  contrast  between  the  two  men  is  impressive: 
Washington,  twenty-five  years  the  elder,  six  feet  two 


188 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Contrast  of 
Washington 
and  Hamilton. 


Hamilton's 
engagement  to 
Elizabeth 
Schuyler. 


in  height,  a  tall  giant,  with  those  enormous  hands  and 
feet,  wrists  and  ankles;  Hamilton,  a  little  man,  five 
feet  seven,  with  finely  formed  hands  and  feet,  a  hand- 
some figure,  sandy  red  hair,  piercing  blue-gray  eyes,  a 
straight  classic  nose,  and  red-white  Scotch  complex- 
ion. Washington  came  to  feel  for  his  young  associate 
a  truly  fatherly  affection.  Indeed,  Washington  seems 
to  have  had  a  warmer  affection  for  Hamilton  than 
for  any  other  of  his  young  companions  of  the  Revolu- 
tion, with  the  possible  exception  of  Light  Horse 
Harry  Lee  of  Virginia. 

It  was  during  Hamilton's  period  of  service  as 
Washington's  secretary,  that  his  personal  life  was 
permanently  established.  In  the  autumn  of  1777,  he 
was  sent  on  a  mission  to  General  Gates;  and  stayed, 
in  Albany,  at  the  home  of  General  Schuyler,  head  of 
one  of  the  great  New  York  landed  families,  of  Dutch 
descent,  and  a  close  friend  of  Washington's.  Here 
Hamilton  met,  for  the  first  time,  Elizabeth,  the  sec- 
ond daughter  of  the  family,  just  twenty,  a  petite  bru- 
nette, with  charming  manner  and  dark,  lovely  eyes. 
Then,  in  the  winter  of  1779  and  80,  when  Washing- 
ton again  had  headquarters  at  Morristown,  General 
Schuyler,  at  that  time  a  member  of  the  Continental 
Congress,  took  a  house  at  Morristown,  to  be  nearer 
his  family.  Hamilton  was  constantly  carrying  mes- 
sages between  Washington  and  General  Schuyler,  on 
business  of  state,  he  was  a  frequent  guest  in  the 
Schuyler  home ;  and  a  warm,  deep  love  affair  quickly 
developed  between  him  and  Elizabeth  Schuyler.    She 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  189 

as  some  seven  months  younger  than  Han. 
al    Schuyler   warmly   welcomed    the    eng 
tving  come  to  feel  for  Hamilton  much  tL 
therly  affection  Washington  had. 
It  was  during  the  period  of  their  engagement 
e  Benedict  Arnold  treason  occurred.    You  will  i 
11  it  was  Hamilton  into  whose  hands  the  treasoL 
ipers  were  placed;   Hamilton  who  gave  them  to 
Washington  and  heard  his  one  comment;  Hamilton 
ho  had  the  task  of  comforting  the  hysterical  Mrs. 
mold,  which  no  doubt  he  did  very  effectively ;  and  it 
from  Hamilton's  letters  to  his  fiancee,  her  father, 
id  to  Laurens,  that  we  have  our  best  account  of  the 
ial  and  execution  of  Major  Andre,  afterwards. 
About  a  month  after  the  Arnold  treason,  Hamilton 
id  Elizabeth  Schuyler  were  married.    The  marriage,  Hamilton's 

i.        n  i  j_      i  _cr?    •  personal  life 

te  result  of  a  warm  and  passionate  love  affair,  re- 
amed a  deep  relationship  to  the  end  of  Hamilton's 
fe.  He  was  a  tender  and  loving  father  to  his  eight 
lildren,  their  companion  in  every  leisure  hour,  play- 
ig  with  them,  even  in  their  childhood  days,  upon  the 
Lirsery  floor,  bitterly  resenting  the  long  absences 
om  home  his  service  of  the  country's  cause  necessi- 
/ted.  His  wife  was  devoted  to  him  with  utter  loyalty, 
irough  his  life  time  and  during  her  long  widowhood, 
i  spite  of  certain  infidelities,  which  Hamilton's  strong 
id  not  always  controlled  passions  afterwards  caused. 
A  few  months  after  Hamilton's  marriage  a  break 
2curred  with  Washington:  that  it  was  not  perma- 
ent  was  due  to  Washington's  generous  magnanimity. 


190 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


ircumstances  of 
le  temporary 
reak  with 
Washington. 


lamilton's  desire 
o  resume  active 
ailitary  service. 


The  circumstances  are  sufficiently  interesting  to  d« 
serve  narration.  Hamilton  was  hastening  from  or 
office  to  another  with  a  message  for  some  genera 
passed  the  foot  of  a  stairway,  and  Washington,  fro] 
the  top,  called  down  to  him.  Hamilton  respondei 
went  on  and  delivered  his  message,  and  returning,  w< 
stopped  for  a  few  moments'  conversation  by  La  Fa] 
ette.  Reaching  the  foot  of  the  staircase  again,  Was 
ington,  still  standing  at  the  top,  in  one  of  those  rai 
occasions  when  Washington  did  not  control  his  nati 
rally  fierce  temper,  exclaimed,  "Colonel  Hamilto 
you  have  kept  me  waiting  for  ten  minutes :  you  trei 
me  with  disrespect,  Sir!"  Hamilton,  from  the  botto] 
of  the  stairway,  responded,  "Sir,  I  am  unaware  of  i 
but  since  you  think  so,  we  part." 

Washington  went  into  his  office,  realized  at  on< 
that  he  had  spoken  hastily  and  unjustly,  and  with  thi 
beautiful  magnanimity  that  makes  him  so  lovable  ar 
human,  sent  a  general  to  Hamilton,  with  what  w; 
practically  an  apology,  from  the  chief  to  the  suborc 
nate,  urging  Hamilton  not  to  leave  his  service. 

Hamilton  was  insistent :  he  would  not  remain.  Pro 
ably  he  welcomed  the  opportunity  to  go :  for  with  h 
keenest  ambition  in  the  military  field,  and  recognizir 
that  the  war  was  drawing  into  its  last  phase,  he  w; 
anxious  to  get  into  active  service  before  the  fightir 
stopped.  Besides  this,  however,  Hamilton  had  som 
thing  of  that  personal  touchiness  which  a  great  m* 
who  is  physically  small  sometimes  shows.  One  wo 
ders  about  that  characteristic.     It  is  rarely,  if  eve 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  191 

found  in  a  great  man  who  is  large  in  stature;  but 
sometimes,  perhaps  often,  it  is  seen  in  a  truly  great  character. 
man  of  small  size.  Can  it  be  an  instinctive  effort  to 
throw  out  a  protection  Nature  has  not  given?  What- 
ever the  explanation,  Hamilton  had  something  of  that 
quality;  so  his  decision  to  go  was  unalterable. 

A  little  later,  Hamilton  wrote  Washington,  asking 
for  an  appointment  in  the  field.  This  put  Washing- 
ton in  a  quandary.  Hamilton  had  been  out  of  active 
service  four  years.  To  appoint  him  over  officers  who 
had  been  fighting  during  that  period,  would  be  unfair 
and  cause  heart  burnings.  On  the  other  hand,  if  not 
appointed,  Washington  feared  Hamilton  would  take 
it  as  a  personal  matter,  because  of  their  quarrel.  So 
Washington  sat  down  and  wrote  Hamilton  a  frank, 
manly  letter,  explaining  the  situation,  telling  him  he 
would  like  to  appoint  him,  but  these  were  the  reasons 
why  he  could  not,  and  hoping  Hamilton  would  not 
take  it  personally.  Hamilton  replied  with  an  equally 
manly  letter,  saying  that  he  understood  perfectly,  but 
that,  if  Washington  had  a  chance  to  appoint  him, 
wouldn't  he  please  do  so. 

A  few  months  later,  the  opportunity  came:  when 
Rochambeau  lent  those  five  thousand  French  soldiers  ^^^nt 
and  Washington,  with  the  combined  armies,  hastened  Colonel  of  a 

...  .  .  _    regiment  of 

south  to  Virginia.    Hamilton  was  given  the  command  infantry, 
of  a  regiment  of  light  infantry,   and  accompanied 
Washington.    At  Yorktown,  there  were  two  redoubts 
to  be  stormed.    The  larger  was  assigned  to  the  French. 
A  large  body  of  the  troops  moved  slowly  forward, 


192 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


service  at 
Yorktown. 


Turning  to  the 
law  as  a  life 
vocation. 


was  discovered  by  the  British,  and  the  fort  was  taken 
only  after  a  sanguinary  conflict. 

The  smaller  redoubt  was  assigned  to  Hamilton  to 
Brilliant  military  capture.  He  crept  swiftly  forward,  with  a  small 
body  of  men,  had  himself  lifted  on  the  shoulders  of 
his  soldiers,  and  leaped  over  among  the  British,  fol- 
lowed by  his  men:  a  most  daring  and  dangerous  act. 
The  result  was,  the  fort  was  taken  with  hardly  any 
loss.  Washington  described  this  feat  as  one  of  rare 
coolness,  firmness  and  intrepidity.  Hamilton  had  his 
military  opportunity  late ;  but  you  see  what  good  use 
he  made  of  it. 

With  the  surrender  of  Cornwallis,  the  war  was  at 
an  end;  and  Hamilton  was  out  of  a  job.  He  had  no 
money  and  no  vocation.  He  was  married,  and  his 
eldest  child,  Philip,  was  born  a  few  months  after 
Yorktown.  He  did  not  wish  to  live  on  his  father-in- 
law.  What  was  he  to  do?  He  turned  naturally  to 
the  law.  That  was  where  his  interest  centered :  in  the 
great  problems  of  government  and  society  which  law 
embodies;  and  it  was  in  that  field  he  had  read  most 
widely.  So  he  went  to  Albany,  and  isolated  himself 
for  five  months.  At  the  end  of  that  time,  he  passed 
brilliantly  his  examinations  for  the  Bar,  was  admitted 
to  practice ;  and  in  the  meantime,  had  compiled  a  Man- 
ual of  Practice,  just  to  fix  his  ideas,  which  served  sev- 
eral generations  of  lawyers  helpfully.  Surely  that 
can  hardly  be  equalled,  as  an  example  of  precocious 
and  gifted  youthful  intelligence  and  intense  work; 
and  understand,  he  was  admitted  to  the  Bar,  not 


A  brilliant  mind, 
with   marvelous 
power  of  work. 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 


193 


through  favoritism,  but  because  he  had  mastered  the 
whole  field  and  was  ready. 

He  wished  to  begin  practice  in  New  York  City; 
but  the  British  occupancy  continued  till  the  autumn 
of  1783,  and  he  had  to  wait.  He  recommended  to  the 
Treasurer  of  the  Continental  Congress,  Morris,  the 
appointment  of  superintendents  to  collect  the  requisi- 
tions from  the  states.  Morris  liked  the  idea,  and 
straightway  appointed  Hamilton  for  New  York.  He 
accepted  reluctantly:  it  was  a  thankless  task;  but  he 
fulfilled  it  faithfully. 

In  1782,  Hamilton  was  a  member  of  the  Conti- 
nental Congress.  His  whole  effort,  during  his  term 
of  service,  was  to  strengthen  the  authority  of  that 
weak  government.  The  situation  was  going  from 
bad  to  worse.  By  1780  the  Continental  currency  was 
down  to  forty  to  one,  by  official  action.  The  follow- 
ing year  it  had  reached  175  to  1.  Meantime,  state 
notes  were  three  to  one.  That  was  because  the  states 
could  lay  taxes;  the  Congress  could  not.  All  Con- 
gress could  do  was  to  assess  the  states  their  quotas, 
and  then  hope  they  would  respond.  As  long  as  the 
war  was  on  there  was  an  acute  reason  for  the  states 
to  do  as  well  as  possible ;  but  when  the  actual  fighting 
stopped,  there  was  not  the  same  pressure.  For  in- 
stance, in  1782,  the  year  that  Hamilton  served  in  the 
Continental  Congress,  Rhode  Island  did  best  among 
the  states,  paying  one-fourth  of  her  assigned  quota. 
Pennsylvania  paid  one-fifth,  Massachusetts  one- 
eighth,  Virginia  one-twelfth,  New  York  one  twentieth, 


Hamilton's  aim 
and  service  as  a 
member   of   the 
Continental 
Congress. 


Weakness  of 
Congress.    Effect 
of  no  taxing 
power. 


Relation  of  the 
States  to  Congress. 


194 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Early  statement 
of  Hamilton's 
conception  of  the 
Union. 


First  calls  for  a 
Convention  to 
make  a 
Constitution. 


Beginning  law 
practice.    Qualities 
that  made 
Hamilton   a 
leader  at  the  bar. 


New  Hampshire  one-one  hundred  and  twenty-first, 
North  Carolina  and  Georgia  nothing.  Imagine,  run- 
ning a  government  under  conditions  such  as  those! 

Hamilton  realized,  more  clearly  than  anyone  else, 
that  the  only  hope  lay  in  establishing  a  stronger  cen- 
tral government.  He  had  stated  his  view  the  year 
that  the  war  was  concluded: 

"There  is  something  noble  and  magnificent  in  the  per- 
spective of  a  great  Federal  Republic,  closely  linked  in 
the  pursuit  of  a  common  interest,  tranquil  and  prosper- 
ous at  home,  respectable  abroad ;  but  there  is  something 
proportionally  diminutive  and  contemptible  in  the  pros- 
pect of  a  number  of  petty  States,  with  the  appearance 
only  of  union,  jarring,  jealous,  and  perverse,  without 
any  determined  direction,  fluctuating  and  unhappy  at 
home,  weak  and  insignificant  by  their  dissensions  in  the 
eyes  of  other  nations."* 

In  1780,  Hamilton  had  suggested  a  Constitutional 
Convention.  In  1782,  through  the  New  York  Legisla- 
ture, he  issued  a  definite  call  for  one;  but  the  time 
was  not  ripe,  and  he  had  to  wait. 

In  the  interim,  the  British  evacuated  New  York  in 
the  autumn  of  1783.  Hamilton  immediately  moved  to 
the  city,  and  opened  a  law  office  on  Wall  Street.  He 
strode  quickly  to  the  head  of  the  profession.  His 
marvelously  gifted  mind,  power  of  intense  and  in- 
cessant work,  ability  to  sheer  down  to  the  fundamen- 
tal principles  of  a  case,  and  genius  for  concise,  logical 
statement  made  him  a  master  at  the  Bar. 


*  Hamilton,  in  The  Continentalist,  published  in   1781:      Works,  Vol. 
I,  pp.  286,  287. 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  195 

At  the  same  time,  his  complete  disregard  of  public 
opinion  and  devotion  to  principle,  even  when  it  was 
abstract  principles  of  government,  are  shown  in  one 
of  the  earliest  cases  he  took. 

In  the  treaty  of  peace  with  Britain,  Congress  had 
agreed  that  no  action  would  be  taken  against  Tories 
or  British  subjects,  who  had  occupied  American  prop- 
erty, during  the  periods  of  British  occupancy  of  our 
towns  and  cities.  Under  the  mood  of  post-war  hatred, 
the  New  York  Legislature,  in  1783,  passed  a  law  that 
such  action  could  be  taken,  making  royalists  liable  for  devotion  to 
arrears  of  rent.  Thus  the  state  law  was  in  direct  vio-  PrinciPle- 
lation  to  the  treaty  made  with  Britain,  by  Congress, 
for  the  whole  country.  Hamilton  at  once  saw  the 
point:  is  the  government  of  all  the  people  to  prevail, 
or  the  government  of  part  of  the  people? 

The  first  case  to  come  up,  under  this  conflict  of  leg- 
islation, was  that  of  a  poor  widow,  whose  property  had 
been  occupied  by  British  subjects  during  the  period  of 
British  control  of  New  York.  They  had  duly  paid 
their  rent,  as  designated  by  the  British  authorities; 
and  under  the  treaty  no  action  could  be  taken  against 
them.  Under  the  New  York  statute,  the  widow  sued 
for  her  arrears  of  rent  over  again.  Public  opinion 
was  strongly  in  her  favor:  she  was  a  poor  widow  and 
everybody  wanted  to  kick  a  Tory  in  those  days. 

Hamilton  took  the  unpopular  case  of  the  British 
subjects;  made  an  argument  so  trenchant  and  con- 
vincing, so  unanswerable  in  logic  and  moral  basis, 
that  the  judge  said  there  was  only  one  possible  way 


196 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  first  victory 
for  Nation  versus 
State. 


The  price 
Hamilton  paid 
for  victory. 


Cause  of  the 
Phocion  Letters. 


A  statement  that 
the  prejudiced 
and  intolerant 
everywhere  might 
well  take  to  heart! 


Hamilton  prophet 
in  vision  as  well 
as  realist  in 
practice. 


to  settle  the  case,  and  decided  it  in  favor  of  Hamil- 
ton's clients.  Hamilton  had  won  the  first  round  of 
the  fight  of  Nation  versus  State.  There  was  a  public 
uproar  against  Hamilton:  he  was  threatened  with 
assassination  and  with  duels;  but  he  carried  the  fight 
to  the  public  in  the  Phocion  pamphlets.  Hamilton's 
opponents  won  a  sweeping  victory  in  the  next  elec- 
tion :  one  price  he  paid  for  devotion  to  principle. 

Hamilton's  two  letters  signed  "Phocion",  and  ad- 
dressed to  "The  Considerate  Citizens  of  New  York", 
in  1784,  were  inspired  by  this  unreasoning  bitterness 
toward  Tories,  and  the  widely  favored  proposal  to 
confiscate  all  their  property.  He  trenchantly 
observed : 

"There  is  a  bigotry  in  politics  as  well  as  in  religions, 

equally  pernicious  in  both.   *  *   * 

"It   is   remarkable,   though  not   extraordinary,  that 

those  characters,  throughout  the  States,  who  have  been 

principally  instrumental  in  the  revolution,  are  the  most 

opposed  to  persecuting  measures."* 

In  the  second  Phocion  Letter,  Hamilton  gave  an 
impressive  diagnosis  of  the  situation  created  by  the 
victorious  War  for  Independence:  the  unparalleled 
opportunity  and  resulting  responsibility,  and  the 
threatened  tragedy,  if  the  opportunity  should  not  be 
taken  and  the  obligation  fulfilled.  The  whole  great 
passage  proves  that  Hamilton  was  not  only  the  su- 
premely practical  statesman,  but  that  he  could  be,  on 
occasion,  the  seer,  as  far-visioned  as  Jefferson  or  any 


Hamilton,  in  Phocion  Letters;    Works,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  284,  285. 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 


197 


other.  The  noble  words  are  still  vitally  pregnant  for 
the  America  that  has  issued,  again  victorious,  from  the 
World  War: 

"Those  who  are  at  present  entrusted  with  power,  in 
all  these  infant  republics,  hold  the  most  sacred  deposit 
that  ever  was  confided  to  human  hands.   *  *   * 

"If  we  set  out  with  justice,  moderation,  liberality, 
and  a  scrupulous  regard  to  the  Constitution,  the  gov- 
ernment will  acquire  a  spirit  and  tone  productive  of 
permanent  blessings  to  the  community.  If,  on  the  con- 
trary, the  public  councils  are  guided  by  humor,  pas- 
sion, and  prejudice;  if  from  resentment  to  individuals, 
or  a  dread  of  partial  inconveniences,  the  Constitutibn 
is  slighted,  or  explained  away,  upon  every  frivolous 
pretext,  the  future  spirit  of  government  will  be  feeble, 
distracted,  and  arbitrary.  The  rights  of  the  subject 
will  be  the  sport  of  every  party  vicissitude.   *   *   * 

"The  world  has  its  eye  upon  America.  The  noble 
struggle  we  have  made  in  the  cause  of  liberty  has  occa- 
sioned a  kind  of  revolution  in  human  sentiment.  The  in- 
fluence of  our  example  has  penetrated  the  gloomy  re- 
gions of  despotism,  and  has  pointed  the  way  to  en- 
quiries which  may  shake  it  to  its  deepest  foundations. 


The  responsibility 
upon  the  States, 
following  the 
Revolution. 


Effects  of  good  and 
bad  government. 


America's 
opportunity  to  be 
the  beacon  light 
to  mankind. 


"To  ripen  enquiry  into  action,  it  remains  for  us  to 
justify  the  revolution  by  its  fruits. 

"If  the  consequences  prove  that  we  really  have  as- 
serted the  cause  of  human  happiness,  what  may  not  be 
expected  from  so  illustrious  an  example?  In  a  greater 
or  less  degree  the  world  will  bless  and  imitate. 

"But  if  experience,  in  this  instance,  verifies  the  lesson 
long  taught  by  the  enemies  of  liberty,  that  the  bulk  of 
mankind  are  not  fit  to  govern  themselves,  *  *  *  we 
shall  then  see  the  final  triumph  of  despotism  over  liberty. 


The  contrasting 
tragic  possibility. 


198 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


How  Hamilton's 
diagnosis  and 
prophesy  apply 
to  the  America 
of  today! 


The  key  to  the 
functioning  of 
democracy. 


The  Commercial 
Convention  of 
1786. 


*  *  *  With  the  greatest  advantages  for  promoting  it 
that  ever  a  people  had,  we  shall  have  betrayed  the  cause 
of  human  nature."* 

With  this  dilemma,  faced  by  the  country  in  those 
bitter  post-war  years,  conditions  had  to  grow  worse 
before  they  could  get  better.  Under  democracy,  the 
people  will  get  the  worst  government  they  are  willing 
to  tolerate ;  and  under  democracy,  the  people  can  get 
the  best  government  they  are  willing  to  work  for. 
That  principle  should  be  remembered:  it  is  the  key 
to  the  functioning  of  democracy.  When  therefore, 
conditions  become  very  bad,  there  is  always  hope  that 
the  people  will  be  aroused  to  make  them  better ;  which 
ought  to  comfort  us  in  dark  days.  So  it  was  with 
the  country  during  those  desperate  years  following 
the  close  of  the  war.  Congress  was  increasingly  feeble 
and  migratory.  England  was  passing  such  Orders 
in  Council  as  she  chose,  and  doing  as  she  pleased  with 
our  shipping  on  the  high  seas.  Algerine  pirates  were 
seizing  our  ships  as  prizes,  and  selling  our  seamen  into 
slavery.  Finally  the  merchants  of  the  country  were 
aroused  by  their  increasing  losses.  You  know,  when 
the  business  interests  get  really  stirred  up,  they  can 
bring  strong  pressure  to  bear  on  the  politicians.  Thus, 
not  Massachusetts,  New  York  or  Pennsylvania,  but 
Virginia  issued  a  call  for  a  Commercial  Convention, 
to  meet  in  Annapolis,  September,  1786,  to  see  what 
could  be  done  to  relieve  the  situation. 


*  Hamilton,  from  the  second  Phocion  Letter,  to  the  Considerate  Citi- 
zens of  New  York,  in  1784:     Works,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  288-290.      * 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  199 

Hamilton  saw  his  opportunity,  and  got  himself 
elected  a  delegate  to  the  Annapolis  Convention.  When    T 

.  ,  .  .       Hamilton  calling 

it  met,  Hamilton  rose  and  made  a  stirring  address,  in  the  Constitutional 
which  he  urged  the  calling  of  a  second  Convention,  to 
meet  in  Philadelphia,  in  May  of  the  following  year,  to 
make  a  Constitution.  His  resolution  was  unanimously 
adopted,  though  the  language  was  altered  to  placate 
certain  delegates :  it  was  to  be  a  Convention  "to  revise 
the  Articles  of  Confederation" ;  but  it  was  the  Consti- 
tutional Convention  just  the  same.  Thus  Hamilton 
called  the  Convention  that  made  the  Constitution. 
He  hastened  home  to  bring  New  York  in  line.  That 

(  °  Governor  Clinton 

was  more  difficult  than  might  be  imagined,  for  the   and  New  York 


reason  that  Governor  Clinton  had  New  York  in  his 
pocket.  To  understand  that,  one  must  remember  that 
a  considerable  property  qualification  was  required  for 
voting  in  those  days.  For  instance,  when  New  York 
State  had  325,000  population,  there  were  only  about 
12,500  voters  in  the  State.  It  can  easily  be  seen  how 
a  successful  politician,  in  league  with  the  great  landed 
families,  could  get  that  small  constituency  united  be- 
hind him.  Governor  Clinton  had  accomplished  that. 
The  Governor  was  a  strong  state  sovereignty  man: 
probably  on  principle :  let  him  have  the  benefit  of  the 
doubt;  but  all  his  interest  was  on  that  side.  If  New 
York  refused  to  sign  a  constitution  and  remained  a 
separate  empire,  Governor  Clinton  was  czar  in  his 
own  regime.  If  New  York  entered  a  union  of  the 
States,  under  a  strong  central  government,  Governor 


State  politics. 


200  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

Clinton  descended  to  the  position  of  a  satrap,  merely 
a  governor  of  a  part  of  the  nation. 

Hamilton  succeeded  in  getting  himself  elected  one 
The  three  New  of  the  three  delegates  from  New  York  to  the  Consti- 
^conl^utianai  tutional  Convention;  but  his  associates,  Yates  and 
Convention.  Lansing,  were  Clinton  henchmen  and  strong  state 

sovereignty  men.  When  the  Convention  began  by 
abrogating  the  old  Articles  of  Confederation,  Yates 
and  Lansing  simply  turned  their  backs  on  it  and  went 
home,  and  would  have  nothing  more  to  do  with  it, 
leaving  Hamilton  sole  representative  from  New 
York.  Hamilton  had  his  heavy  law  practice.  He 
went  from  New  York  to  Philadelphia  and  from  Phil- 
adelphia to  New  York.  He  did  not  take  a  very  active 
part  in  the  part  in  the  Convention;  partly  because  he  was  only  a 

minority  representative  from  New  York,  but  proba- 
bly more  because  he  saw  it  was  not  necessary.  He 
seems  to  have  asked  for  more  than  he  wanted,  to  get 
as  much  as  he  could.  When,  after  the  months  of 
wrangling,  the  Constitution  was  made  and  signed  by 
the  delegates:  our  compromise  Constitution,  great  as 
it  is,  which  completely  satisfied  nobody,  but  which 
most  of  the  delegates  believed  was  the  best  compromise 

Governor  Clinton's     _  -i-i-i*  j    «i_      /»      .  r?   •.  -ij 

attack  on  the  they  could  achieve ;  and  the  first  copy  of  it  reached 
New  York  City,  there  appeared,  the  same  day,  a  viru- 
lent attack  upon  it,  from  the  pen  of  Governor  Clinton, 
in  the  Governor's  official  newspaper. 

Hamilton  saw  that  something  must  be  done ;  and  in 

The  Federalist  ,  ° 

papers.  a  sloop,  coming  down  the  river  from  Albany  to  New 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 


201 


York,  he  wrote  the  first  of  the  Federalist  papers.  The 

opening  passage  reads: 

"To  the  People  of  the  State  of  New  York: 
"After  an  unequivocal  experience  of  the  inefficiency 
of  the  subsisting  federal  government,  you  are  called 
upon  to  deliberate  on  a  new  Constitution  for  the  United 
States  of  America.  The  subject  speaks  its  own  impor- 
tance; comprehending  in  its  consequences  nothing  less 
than  the  existence  of  the  Union,  the  safety  and  welfare 
of  the  parts  of  which  it  is  composed,  the  fate  of  an  em- 
pire in  many  respects  the  most  interesting  in  the  world. 
It  has  been  frequently  remarked  that  it  seems  to  have 
been  reserved  to  the  people  of  this  country,  by  their  con- 
duct and  example,  to  decide  the  important  question, 
whether  societies  of  men  are  really  capable  or  not  of 
establishing  good  government  from  reflection  and  choice, 
or  whether  they  are  forever  destined  to  depend  for  their 
political  constitutions  on  accident  and  force.  If  there 
be  any  truth  in  the  remark,  the  crisis  at  which  we  are 
arrived  may  with  propriety  be  regarded  as  the  era  in 
which  that  decision  is  to  be  made ;  and  a  wrong  election 
of  the  part  we  shall  act  may,  in  this  view,  deserve  to  be 
considered  as  the  general  misfortune  of  mankind."* 

Hamilton  appealed  to  Jay  and  Madison  to  help 
him  in  the  critical  fight.  Jay  wrote  a  few  papers, 
Madison  a  considerable  number,  more  philosophical 
in  character;  but  it  was  Hamilton  who  took  up  in 
detail  every  power  conferred  by  the  Constitution,  and 
argued  its  significance  and  value,  and  who  considered 
one  by  one  the  objections  raised  against  it,  answering 
them  conclusively.     The  bulk,  thus,  of  that  thick, 


Opening  appeal   in 
the  Federalist,  to 
the  people  of  New 
York  State. 


Hamilton's  view 
of  the  crisis  faced 
by  our  people. 
Recognition  that 
the  solution  was 
for  mankind. 


The  part  of  Jay 
and  Madison  in 
the  Federalist. 


Hamilton's 
major  part  and 
the  amazing 
thoroughness 
of  his  work. 


*  Hamilton,  opening  passage  of  the  first  paper   in   The  Federalist : 
Works,  Vol.  XI,  pp.  3,  4. 


202 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Fighting  for   a 
union  of  the  people 
in  a  Nation. 


Hamilton's 
reiterated   belief 
in  the  first 
principle  of 
democracy : 
self-government 
by  the  people. 


The  Federalist 
papers  giving 
the  program  of 
Hamilton's  great 
work  as  statesman. 


large  volume  of  Federalist  papers  was  written  wholly 
by  Hamilton,  in  a  few  months'  time,  in  the  intervals  of 
his  law  practice. 

One  weakness  of  the  Continental  Congress  had 
been  that  its  members  voted  only  as  State  delegations, 
not  unlike  the  procedure  of  a  political  party  conven- 
tion under  the  unit  rule.  Hamilton  fought  hard  for 
a  truly  national  Union,  as  against  a  federation  of 
States,  with  the  government's  authority  flowing  from 
the  people  and  not  from  the  States.  He  said  in  num- 
ber 22: 

"It  has  not  a  little  contributed  to  the  infirmities  of 
the  existing  federal  system,  that  it  never  had  a  ratifica- 
tion by  the  people.  *  *  *  The  fabric  of  American  em- 
pire ought  to  rest  on  the  solid  basis  of  the  consent  of 
the  people.  The  streams  of  national  power  ought  to 
flow  immediately  from  that  pure,  original  fountain  of 
all  legitimate  authority."  * 

Believing  that  the  national  government  should  ex- 
ercise unhampered  authority,  he  argued: 

"A  government  ought  to  contain  in  itself  every  power 
requisite  to  the  full  accomplishment  of  the  objects  com- 
mitted to  its  care,  and  to  the  complete  execution  of  the 
trusts  for  which  it  is  responsible,  free  from  every  other 
control  but  a  regard  to  the  public  good  and  to  the 
sense  of  the  people."  f 

Hamilton  laid  down,  in  the  Federalist  papers,  the 
whole  program  for  a  strong,  unhampered,  truly  na- 


180. 


Hamilton,  in  No.  22  of  The  Federalist.-     Works,  Vol.  XI,  pp.   179, 


f  Hamilton,  in  No.  31  of  The  Federalist;     Works,  Vol.  XI,  p.  241. 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 


203 


tional  government,  which  afterwards  he  was  to  fight 
through  to  victory. 

The  concluding  words  of  the  last  paper  were  a 
solemn  warning: 

"I  acknowledge  that  I  cannot  entertain  an  equal  tran- 
quillity with  those  who  affect  to  treat  the  dangers  of  a 
longer  continuance  in  our  present  situation  as  imagi- 
nary. A  nation,  without  a  national  government,  is,  in 
my  view,  an  awful  spectacle.  The  establishment  of  a 
Constitution,  in  time  of  profound  peace,  by  the  volun- 
tary consent  of  a  whole  people,  is  a  prodigy,  to  the  com- 
pletion of  which  I  look  forward  with  trembling  anxiety. 
I  can  reconcile  it  to  no  rules  of  prudence  to  let  go  the 
hold  we  now  have,  in  so  arduous  an  enterprise,  upon 
seven  out  of  the  thirteen  States,  and  after  having  passed 
over  so  considerable  a  part  of  the  ground,  to  recom- 
mence the  course.  I  dread  the  more  the  consequences 
of  new  attempts,  because  I  know  that  powerful  individ- 
uals, in  this  and  in  other  States,  are  enemies  to  a  general 
national  government  in  every  possible  shape,"* 

It  is  hard  to  see  how  anyone  can  read  Hamilton's 
writings,  and  not  recognize  his  entire  sincerity  and 
pure-minded  devotion  to  the  welfare  of  the  people  and 
the  nation,  as  he  saw  it.  That  we  became  a  Nation, 
and  not  a  collection  of  loosely  associated,  mutually 
jealous  and  contending  States,  is  due  to  Hamilton 
more  than  to  any  other  man  or  group  of  men. 

Among  all  his  writings,  the  Federalist  essays  rank 
high.  They  won  completely  New  York  City  and 
Westchester  County  to  the  Constitution,  influenced 

*  Hamilton,    concluding   passage    in    No.    85,    the   last   paper    of    The 
Federalist:     Works,  Vol.  XII,  pp.  345,  346. 


The  closing 
warning. 


Hamilton's 
sincerity  and  utter 
devotion  to  the 
cause. 


Why  the  United 
States   is   a 
nation. 


What  the 
Federalist 
essays  achieved. 


204 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Hamilton's 
service  in  the 
Poughkeepsie 
Convention. 


Putting  New  York 
in  the  Union. 


The   celebration. 


voters  throughout  the  state  and  in  other  states;  and 
the  volume  remains  a  great,  permanent  classic  on  gov- 
ernment, vital  and  interesting  at  the  present  hour. 

In  1788,  New  York  State  held  a  Convention  at 
Poughkeepsie,  to  decide  whether  or  not  New  York 
should  accept  the  Constitution  and  enter  the  Union. 
There  were  fifty-seven  delegates;  and  when  the  Con- 
vention met,  forty-six  were  opposed,  and  only  eleven 
in  favor  of  entering  the  Union.  It  looked  as  if  Gov- 
ernor Clinton  had  won  in  advance,  hands  down.  The 
debate  lasted  three  weeks.  Hamilton  spoke  nearly 
every  day,  and  sometimes  almost  all  day;  and  the 
sheer  force  of  the  man's  intellect,  acting  on  the  intel- 
lects of  those  other  men,  won  the  fight.  It  is  true 
he  used  a  whip:  he  threatened  that  if  New  York  re- 
fused to  enter  the  Union,  New  York  City  and  West- 
chester County  would  leave  the  rest  of  the  State,  form 
a  separate  commonwealth,  and  enter  anyway.  That 
helped ;  but  it  was  mainly  his  dominating  intellect  and 
unanswerable  logic  that  won,  in  the  final  vote,  thirty 
for  the  Constitution,  against  twenty-seven  opposed. 
Thus  Alexander  Hamilton  put  New  York  in  the 
Union;  and  more  than  anybody  else,  he  made  the 
Union. 

The  celebration  in  New  York  City  was  planned  by 
L'Enfant,  who  laid  out  the  City  of  Washington,  D.  C. 
When  the  great  float,  the  ship  marked  "Hamilton" 
came  by,  the  crowd  went  wild  with  enthusiasm.  For 
a  considerable  time  afterwards,  New  York  City  was 
called,  by  both  the  friends  and  enemies  of  Hamilton, 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  205 

"Hamiltoniana" :  not  such  a  bad  name:  one  almost 
wishes  it  might  have  lasted. 

The  first  election  under  the  new  Constitution  fol- 
lowed, with  every  vote  of  the  electoral  college  for  Hamilton's 
George  Washington  for  first  President.    You  will  re-  waSgWs 
call  Washington's  reluctance  to  serve,  and  the  letters  acceptance  of  the 

?  Presidency. 

he  received  from  statesmen  all  over  the  country,  urg- 
ing his  acceptance.  Hamilton  wrote  what  was  per- 
haps the  strongest  letter  of  all.  The  young  man  wrote 
to  his  senior,  the  secretary  to  his  chief  to  the  effect: 
you  must  accept,  you  have  no  right  to  decline ;  you  are 
the  one  man  who  can  lead  the  country  safely  forward 
and  make  the  new  government  a  living  reality. 
Washington  replied,  recognizing  the  justice  of  Ham- 
ilton's arguments  and  saying  he  would  accept.  Then, 
a  little  later,  he  said,  "But  you  must  be  my  Secretary 
of  the  Treasury". 

It  was  the  worst  job  of  the  Union.     It  has  always  Appointment  and 
been  a  thankless  task:  it  was  worse  then  than  it  has   sec?etarye0fSthe 
ever  been  since,  or  could  be  imagined  ever  again  to   Treasui7* 
be.    Hamilton  knew  that,  if  he  accepted,  he  would  be 
criticized,  vilified,  abused.     He  accepted:  why?     Be- 
cause he  knew  he  was  the  one  man  who  could  do  that 
work  and  carry  the  problem  through. 

Think  of  the  task  he  faced :  a  hideous  internal  debt, 
for  which  the  government  had  not  had  value  received,   Hamilton's 
since  the  debt  had  been  accumulated  under  a  rapidly  colossal  task- 
depreciating  currency.     Besides  this,  was  an  almost 
equally  terrible  external  debt.     We  had  borrowed 
money  wherever  we  could  get  it,  chiefly  from  France. 


206 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Proposals  for 
repudiation 
of  debts. 


Proposals  for 
discrimination 
or  partial 
repudiation. 


Then  we  borrowed  more  money  to  pay  the  interest  on 
what  we  had  borrowed ;  then  more  to  pay  the  interest 
on  the  interest;  and  when  we  could  not  borrow  any 
more,  we  defaulted  the  interest. 

Many,  even  statesmen,  threw  up  their  hands  and 
said,  "It  is  no  use,  we  cannot  pay;  we  will  repudiate, 
and  start  afresh";  but  that  cannot  be  done.  The 
Bolshevist  regime  in  Russia  cynically  attempted  such 
repudiation;  but  Russia  can  never  take  her  place 
among  the  nations,  until  whatever  government  sur- 
vives assumes  the  national  mortgage,  in  taking  the 
national  farm.  Of  course,  a  nation,  like  an  individual, 
may  go  through  bankruptcy,  to  the  ruin  of  its  credit ; 
but  neither  the  one  nor  the  other  can  merely  repudiate 
honest  debts. 

Others,  James  Madison  among  them,  urged  dis- 
crimination. They  said,  where  soldiers  have  kept  their 
claims,  we  will  pay  them ;  but  where  they  have  got  into 
the  hands  of  gamblers  and  speculators,  we  will  repu- 
diate or  pay  a  fraction  of  them.  That  caught  the  pop- 
ular fancy.  Everybody  likes  to  kick  a  speculator, 
chiefly,  perhaps,  because  nobody  admits  he  is  one. 
Once  more,  however,  discrimination  is  impossible.  If 
the  debts  are  just,  they  must  be  paid,  no  matter  into 
whose  hands  they  may  have  passed.  To  repudiate 
them  because  of  a  change  in  ownership,  is  to  destroy 
equally  the  credit  of  the  debtor  and  the  faith  on  which 
business  relations  rest.  Further,  how  could  they  dis- 
criminate with  regard  to  the  indebtedness  of  the  Revo- 
lution?   Here  was  a  claim  sold  by  a  soldier  to  a  spec- 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  207 

ulator :  you  would  repudiate  that.  Here  was  a  starv- 
ing soldier,  whose  friend,  to  help  him,  bought  his 
claim  at  a  fair  price:  what  would  you  do  with  that? 
Except  in  an  occasional  case,  just  discrimination  was 
simply  impossible. 

Hamilton  had  expected  to  report  on  the  floor  of 
the  house,  and  prepared  himself  for  it,  assuming  that  ^emandin 
heads  of  departments  would  have  that  natural  relation  written  report. 
to  the  legislative  body.  Congress  established  a  prec- 
edent, subsequently  harmful  to  the  Nation's  busi- 
ness, by  refusing  to  hear  him.  Why?  Because  they 
were  afraid  of  him:  the  man's  dominating  intellect, 
unerring  grasp  of  moral  principles,  convincing  power 
of  logical  statement,  when  he  spoke  by  word  of  mouth.  „     .,_,    , 

,  r  J  Hamilton's  power 

Understand,  Hamilton  was  never  an  orator  lor  the  as  an  orator 
crowd;  but  when  he  addressed  men  of  intellect,  lead-  Naders! 
ers,   he    dominated   them   with   his    convictions    and 
carried  them  with  him,  with  a  sweeping  power,  un- 
equalled by  any  other  man  in  America,  probably  in 
the  world,  of  his  time. 

So,  fearing  his  personal  power,  Congress  demanded 
a  written  report.    Hamilton  furnished  it  in  five  days :   Th?.  remarkable 

r  J         achievement  of 

twenty  thousand  words  of  carefully  reasoned  argu-  writing  the  great 
ment,  and  more  than  that  amount  of  figures  and  days'  time. 
schedules,  outlining  his  funding  scheme  for  the  colos- 
sal debts.  How  could  he  do  it?  Because  he  had  it 
all  thought  out  in  his  brain,  ready  for  oral  statement, 
and  there  was  required  merely  the  mechanical  labor 
of  writing  it  down. 

That  Report,  of  January  9th,  1790,  is  a  master- 


208 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  basic  thesis: 
to  reestablish  the 
public  credit  by 
paving  every  debt 
in  "full. 


Hamilton's  view 
that  the  future 
of  the  Nation 
depended  upon  the 
honest  acceptance 
and  just  fulfillment 
of  all  obligations. 


The  only  way  of 
restoring  the 
public  credit. 


The  ethics  of 
organized  society. 


The  ends  Hamilton 
sought  to  achieve 
by  establishing  the 
public  credit, 


piece.  Its  initial  thesis  was,  the  first  step  in  getting 
the  Nation  on  its  feet  is  to  reestablish  the  public  credit. 
That  can  be  accomplished  only  by  honestly  assuming 
our  obligations  and  paying  every  debt,  internal  and 
external,  at  face  value.    In  his  own  words: 

"To  attempt  to  enumerate  the  complicated  variety  of 
mischiefs,  in  the  whole  system  of  the  social  economy, 
which  proceed  from  a  neglect  of  the  maxims  that  up- 
hold public  credit,  and  justify  the  solicitude  manifested 
by  the  House  on  this  point,  would  be  an  improper  ob- 
trusion on  their  time  and  patience. 

"In  so  strong  a  light,  nevertheless,  do  they  appear 
to  the  Secretary,  that,  on  their  due  observance,  at  the 
present  critical  juncture,  materially  depends,  in  his 
judgment,  the  individual  and  aggregate  prosperity  of 
the  citizens  of  the  United  States ;  their  relief  from  the 
embarrassments  they  now  experience;  their  character 
as  a  people ;   the  cause  of  good  government. 

"If  the  maintenance  of  public  credit,  then,  be  truly 
so  important,  the  next  inquiry  which  suggests  itself  is: 
By  what  means  is  it  to  be  effected?  The  ready  answer 
to  which  question  is,  by  good  faith ;  by  a  punctual  per- 
formance of  contracts.  States,  like  individuals,  who 
observe  their  engagements  are  respected  and  trusted, 
while  the  reverse  is  the  fate  of  those  who  pursue  an  op- 
posite conduct. 

"To  promote  the  increasing  respectability  of  the 
the  American  name;  to  answer  the  calls  of  justice;  to 
restore  landed  property  to  its  due  value ;  to  furnish 
new  resources,  both  to  agriculture  and  commerce;  to 
cement  more  closely  the  union  of  the  States ;  to  add  to 
their  security  against  foreign  attack;  to  establish  pub- 
lic order  on  the  basis  of  an  upright  and  liberal  policy: 
these  are  the  great  and  invaluable  ends  to  be  secured  by 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  209 

a  proper  and  adequate  provision,  at  the  present  period, 
for  the  support  of  public  credit."* 

Hamilton  recognized  that  speculators  would  profit 
in  some  instances ;  but  held  that  must  be  disregarded :  significance  in 
to  invalidate    a    debt,    because    its    ownership    had  ^morimy00^7 
changed  hands,  would   destroy  the   faith  on  which  prevailing  among 

.  .  persons. 

society  and  business  proceed.  The  beauty  of  his  plan 
was  its  honest  simplicity.  He  merely  applied  to  or- 
ganized societies  the  principle  of  honesty  and  justice 
accepted  for  individuals:  an  application  not  yet  uni- 
versally made.  Hamilton's  enemies  accused  him  of 
holding  that  a  national  debt  was  a  blessing.  That  was 
not  true.  What  he  did  argue  was  that  the  acceptance 
of  common  obligations  tended  to  unify  a  people,  and 
that  the  proper  funding  of  the  debt  would  furnish,  in 
the  stocks  or  bonds  representing  it,  additional  capital 
for  business  enterprise. 

With  the  twenty  thousand  words  of  argument, 
Hamilton  furnished,  as  has  been  stated,  a  still  larger  The^  funding 
amount  of  figures  and  schedules  for  his  funding  plan, 
carrying  the  payment  over  a  sufficiently  long  period, 
so  that  taxation  would  not  be  too  burdensome  in  any 
one  year.  The  Report  was  so  admirable  that  Con- 
gress adopted  it;  and  he  had  won  the  first  round  of 
the  fight. 

Now  came  the  problem  of  the  practical  functioning 
of  the  scheme.     The  next  step  was  for  the  Federal  mheL^pti°n 
Government  to  take  over  the  debts,  accumulated  by 

♦Hamilton,  in  First  Report  on  the  Public  Credit:      Works,  Vol.  II, 
pp.  229-232. 


210 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Why  assumption 
of  state  debts  by 
the  Federal 
Government  was 
the  key  measure 
in  Hamilton's 
great  program. 


The  selfishness 
of  post-war 
thinking. 


What  the  defeat 
of  assumption 
would  mean. 


the  several  States  during  the  War  for  Independence, 
and  pay  them  as  the  debt  of  the  whole  people. 

Now  see  how  this  was  the  hinging  element  in  Ham- 
ilton's plan.  If  the  States  retained  their  debts,  and 
paid  them  severally,  the  State  governments  would 
have  the  superior  taxing  power.  If  the  Federal  Gov- 
ernment assumed  these  debts,  and  paid  them,  as  the 
debt  of  all  the  people  in  the  land,  then  the  Federal 
Government  would  have  the  superior  taxing  power. 
Now  the  government  that  has  the  supreme  power  of 
taxation  is  always  the  supreme  government.  One 
can  go  through  all  human  history  and  find  hardly  an 
exception  to  that  statement.  ^ 

The  post-war  period,  however,  was,  as  always,  one 
of  selfish  thinking.  States  that  had  suffered  severely 
and  accumulated  a  heavy  war  debt  thought  that,  of 
course,  the  Federal  Government  should  take  over  the 
state  debts.  States  that  had  been  outside  the  war 
zone  and  had  sacrificed  less  argued:  "What,  the  Fed- 
eral Government  assume  our  small  debt,  and  tax  us 
to  pay  the  debts  of  other  States?  No,  we  will  pay  our 
own  debts,  and  let  them  pay  theirs!"  The  result  was 
that  Hamilton's  key  measure  was  in  peril.  If  it  failed, 
the  whole  plan  to  build  an  efficient  government  failed. 
The  States,  retaining  the  taxing  power,  would  be 
supreme  in  authority;  while  the  new  central  govern- 
ment would  be  the  weak  Continental  Congress  over 
again,  standing,  cap  in  hand,  to  ask  favors  of  the 
sovereign  States.  Incidentally,  it  would  be  practi- 
cally impossible  to  get  the  debts  accumulated  by  the 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  211 

Continental  Congress  acceptably  divided  among  the 
several  States. 

At  this  point,  Hamilton  took  his  first  great  step 
down,  from  statesman  to  politician.  He  took  others,  The  political 
afterwards,  far  more  reprehensible :  this  he  could  rea-  jefifersonWlt 
sonably  argue,  was  forced  by  the  situation ;  but  it  was 
a  step  down,  nevertheless.  He  went  to  Jefferson,  and 
proposed  that  first  great  deal  in  American  politics, 
the  bargain  already  cited,  that  for  the  needed  Vir- 
ginia votes  for  assumption,  Hamilton  would  furnish 
enough  Federalist  votes  to  have  the  new  Capital 
placed  in  the  South,  where  Jefferson  and  other  South- 
ern leaders  wanted  it.  Hamilton  was  indifferent  as 
to  the  location  of  the  Capital:  all  he  wanted  was  a 
strong,  efficient  government  to  function  in  it.  Jef- 
ferson, as  we  have  seen,  at  that  time  not  opposed  to 
the  federal  assumption  of  state  debts,  cheerfully 
agreed.  In  July,  1790,  came  the  vote  on  the  Capital; 
and  Hamilton,  true  to  the  bargain,  influenced  enough 
votes  to  have  it  placed  where  it  is  today.  The  follow- 
ing month,  came  the  final  vote  on  assumption.  Jef- 
ferson, fulfilling  his  part  of  the  agreement,  furnished 
the  required  Virginia  votes;  and  Hamilton's  great  and 
hinging  measure  carried.  The  statement  is  so  import- 
ant that  it  must  be  repeated;  and  its  significance 
should  now  be  evident:  that  is  why  the  Capital  is  at 
Washington ;  and  that  is  why  there  was  a  government 
in  it  strong  enough  to  survive  the  Civil  War,  and 
function  efficiently  to  the  present  hour. 

This  victory  made  a  series  of  great  measures  pos- 


212 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Significance  of 
establishing  a 
National  Bank. 


Washington's 
doubt  and 
handling  of  the 
problem. 


Hamilton's  view 
of  the  implied 
powers  in  the 
Constitution. 


sible.  Hamilton's  next  step  concerned  the  specific 
functioning  of  his  plan.  To  carry  out  his  funding 
scheme  for  the  payment  of  the  internal  and  external 
debt  a  national  bank  was  needed.  Unless  you  are 
intimately  familiar  with  the  history  of  finance,  you  can 
hardly  imagine  the  meager  banking  facilities  of  those 
days.  The  first  national  bank  was  the  stocking,  or  a 
hole  in  the  woodshed  floor;  and  that  condition  pre- 
vailed for  a  long  time.  Hamilton  had  previously 
established  a  state  bank  in  New  York,  in  1784;  and 
he  now  prepared  a  bill  to  establish  the  National  Bank, 
necessary  for  the  functioning  of  his  plan.  It  passed 
the  Congress;  but  here  Washington  drew  back.  He 
was  not  sure.  He  could  find  nothing  in  the  Constitu- 
tion warranting  the  President  in  signing  a  bill  to  es- 
tablish such  a  corporation  as  a  National  Bank.  He 
consulted  Jefferson  and  Randolph,  who  both  disap- 
proved, holding  the  proposal  unconstitutional.  So  he 
asked  James  Madison  to  prepare  a  veto  message. 
Then,  with  his  shrewd  wisdom,  Washington  handed 
the  opposed  opinions  to  Hamilton,  and  asked  him  to 
answer  them.  Two  days  after  Washington  received 
Madison's  draft  of  a  veto  message,  Hamilton  came 
back  with  eleven  thousand  words  of  carefully  reasoned 
argument,  completely  convinced  Washington,  who 
signed  the  bill,  and  consistently  supported,  thereafter, 
every  one  of  Hamilton's  great  measures  for  making 
the  National  Government  a  vital  and  growing  reality. 
It  was  in  this  paper  that  Hamilton  developed,  for  the 
first  time,  his  theory  of  implied  powers  in  the  Consti- 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  213 

tution.  His  view  was :  in  creating  the  Federal  Gov- 
ernment to  fulfill  certain  ends,  the  Constitution 
grants,  by  implication,  the  powers  necessary  to  achieve 
those  ends.  The  Federal  Government,  once  formed, 
moreover,  is  the  government  of  all  the  people  in  the 
land.  As  such,  it  takes  precedence  over  the  govern- 
ments of  fractions  or  sections  of  the  people  in  the  land. 
All  powers,  therefore,  not  specifically  reserved  to  the 
States  in  the  Constitution,  belong  to  the  Federal  Gov- 
ernment, and  may  rightly  be  assumed  by  it,  with  the 
Supreme  Court  as  the  final  arbiter  and  interpreter  of 
the  Constitution. 

Now,  if  you  wish,  in  clearest  outline,  the  original  The  fundamental 

J  °  opposition  of 

cleavage  in  political  philosophy,  which  was  to  divide  Hamilton  and 

i      •  r^-    «i  Jefferson  in 

the  country  ever  after  and  culminate  m  the  Civil  War,  political 
remember  that  Jefferson  held  exactly  the  opposite.  p  l  osop  y' 
His  view,  as  expressed  in  the  Kentucky  Resolutions 
and  elsewhere,  was:  the  State  governments  preceded 
the  Federal  Government  as  original  sovereign  author- 
ities. They  had  united  to  form  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment, as  an  instrument  to  perform  certain  limited 
functions;  exactly  as  the  nations  have  united  and 
established  the  League  of  Nations  to  carry  out  certain 
defined  functions,  without  compromising  the  sov- 
ereignty of  the  nations  united  in  the  League.  The 
parallel  is  perfect.  All  powers,  therefore,  not  specifi- 
cally accorded  to  the  Federal  Government  in  the  Con- 
stitution, belonged  to  the  States ;  and  each  State  might 
lawfully    annul — nullify — any    act    of    the    Federal 


214 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  conflict  that 
required  a  Civil 
War  for  its 
settlement. 


The  great  Report 
on  Manufactures, 
of  Dee.  5th,  1791. 


Evidences  of  the 
naive  economic 
thinking  of  the 
time. 


Hamilton's   failure 
to  see  the  evil  of 
exploiting  children 
in  industry. 


Government  not  specifically  authorized  in  the  Consti- 
tution; with  each  State,  as  absolutely  sovereign,  its 
own  final  judge  as  to  when  its  rights  had  been  violated, 
thus  denying  the  authority  of  the  Supreme  Court 
finally  to  interpret  the  Constitution. 

There  is  the  original  conflict  in  the  view  of  our  gov- 
ernment, held  with  equal  sincerity  on  both  sides,  which 
was  settled  only  through  the  horrors  of  a  colossal 
fratricidal  war,  so  far  as  such  questions  can  be  settled 
by  warfare. 

Hamilton  next  established  a  mint  and  coinage  sys- 
tem ;  and  then  wrote  his  great  paper  on  manufactures, 
which,  almost  equally  with  the  assumption  and  fund- 
ing measures^  produced  a  storm  of  controversy  and 
attack.  The  naive  thinking  of  the  time  is  evident  in 
the  fact  that  he  was  compelled  to  argue  that  manu- 
facturing industry  is  truly  productive,  as  is  agricul- 
ture, and  that  interest  on  capital  is  an  economic  factor 
equivalent  to  rent  on  land.  A  further  evidence  of 
the  same  state  of  thought  is  Hamilton's  own  error  in 
holding  that  the  employment  of  young  children  is  an 
advantage  in  manufactures.  One  gasps  at  his  state- 
ment, in  the  light  of  the  tragic  lessons  experience  has 
since  taught  us: 

"It  is  worthy  of  particular  remark  that,  in  general, 
women  and  children  are  rendered  more  useful,  and  the 
latter  more  early  useful,  by  manufacturing  establish- 
ments, than  they  would  otherwise  be.  Of  the  number 
of  persons  employed  in  the  cotton  manufactories  of 
Great  Britain,  it  is  computed  that  four  sevenths,  nearly, 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  215 

are  women  and  children,  of  whom  the  greatest  propor- 
tion are  children,  and  many  of  them  of  a  tender  age."* 

This  citing  as  an  excellence,  one  of  the  saddest  evils  may  fail  victim 
of  the  time,  is  only  a  painful  illustration  of  how  a  great  MsVmeT01^  ° 
and  wise  man  may  fall  victim  to  an  error  of  his  age. 

In  contrast  to  the  opinions  of  many  of  those  who 
profess  to  be  his  followers,  Hamilton  began  his  Re-  trade  and 
port  with  a  frank  recognition  of  the  natural  advan-  ^ndustry^as  the 
tages  of  free  commerce,  with  no  hampering  interfer-   natural  order» 
ence  by  government ;  but  argued  of  that  policy : 

"If  it  had  governed  the  conduct  of  nations  more 
generally  than  it  has  done,  there  is  room  to  suppose 
that  it  might  have  carried  them  faster  to  prosperity 
and  greatness  than  they  have  attained  by  the  pursuit 
of  maxims  too  widely  opposite."! 

In  place  of  that  natural  freedom  of  production  and  The  European 
exchange,  burdensome  restraints  had  been  established,   restraints  on 
especially  against  the  exports  of  the  United  States.  J?ad^  compelling 
It  was  these  restrictions  on  the  part  of  European  na-  manufactures. 
tions  that  convinced  Hamilton  of  the  necessity  of 
fostering  our    own    manufactures    and    developing 
greater  domestic  commerce. 

His  supreme  argument,  however,  was  the  need  of 
national  self-sufficiency,  especially  in  war.     Suppose  nationlT^eif- 
the  country  were  kept  agricultural,  and  every  knife   sufficiency.    Note 
and  gun  were  bought  from  Britain;  and  then  sud-  argument  in  the 
denly  we  were  plunged  into  war  with  Britain:  what  prQgrrmmmen 
would  happen  to  us? 


*  Hamilton,  from  Report  on  Manufactures:    Works,  Vol.  IV,  p.  91. 
f  Hamilton,  Report  on  Manufactures:     Works,  Vol.  IV,  p.  73. 


216 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Hamilton's  view 
that  making  the 
Nation  self- 
dependent  was  the 
next  great  step 
of  progress. 


The  turn  of 
the  tide. 


"Not  only  the  wealth  but  the  independence  and  se- 
curity of  a  country  appear  to  be  materially  connected 
with  the  prosperit}'  of  manufactures.  Every  nation, 
with  a  view  to  those  great  objects,  ought  to  endeavor 
to  possess  within  itself,  all  the  essentials  of  national  sup- 
ply. These  comprise  the  means  of  subsistence,  habita- 
tion, clothing,  and  defense. 

"The  possession  of  these  is  necessary  to  the  perfec- 
tion of  the  body  politic ;  to  the  safety  as  well  as  to  the 
welfare  of  the  society.  The  want  of  either  is  the  want 
of  an  important  organ  of  political  life  and  motion; 
and  in  the  various  crises  which  await  a  state,  it  must 
severely  feel  the  effects  of  any  such  deficiency.  The 
extreme  embarrassments  of  the  United  States  during  the 
late  war,  from  an  incapacity  of  supplying  themselves, 
are  still  matter  of  keen  recollection ;  a  future  war  might 
be  expected  again  to  exemplify  the  mischiefs  and  dan- 
gers of  a  situation  to  which  that  incapacity  is  still,  in 
too  great  a  degree,  applicable,  unless  changed  by  timely 
and  vigorous  exertion.  To  effect  this  change,  as  fast  as 
shall  be  prudent,  merits  all  the  attention  and  all  the 
zeal  of  our  public  councils ;  't  is  the  next  great  work  to 
be  accomplished."* 

So  far,  Hamilton  had  been  victorious  in  every 
round  of  the  fight.  Now  the  inevitable  reaction  came. 
The  chief  portfolio  in  the  Cabinet  is  that  of  Secretary 
of  State,  held  by  Jefferson ;  but  the  chief  figure  in  the 
Cabinet  was  Hamilton.  Naturally,  that  was  not 
pleasing  to  Jefferson.  Then,  as  we  have  seen,  Jef- 
ferson drew  back  in  alarm  from  the  rapidly  growing 
power  of  the  Federal  Government  under  Hamilton's 


*  Hamilton,    from    Report    on   Manufactures : 
135,  136. 


Works,  Vol.   IV,  pp. 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  217 

initiative  and  Washington's  sanction.    He  came  really  Reasons  for 
to  believe  that  Hamilton,  and  perhaps  Washington,  Rowing118 
wished  to  develop  an  aristocracy  and  turn  the  govern-   opposition  to 
ment  into  a  monarchy.    That  was  not  true;  but  Jef- 
ferson believed  it.     Moreover,  he  had  some  apparent 
warrant  for  his  distrust  in  the  fact  that  Hamilton  had 
proposed,  in  the  Constitutional  Convention,  a  Presi- 
dent and   Senate   elected   on   good   behavior,   which 
would  be  dangerously  near  monarchy.     Hamilton's 
gravest  limitation,  moreover,  was  a  lack  of  faith  in  the 
people,  which  Jefferson  had  in  such  abundant  meas- 
ure.   From  this  lack  sprang  the  errors  in  Hamilton's 
theory  of  government  and  the  mistakes  in  his  political 
career. 

While  strongly  favoring  republican  government, 
Hamilton  regarded  it  as  an  experiment,  which  must 
be  proved  in  practice.  His  faith  and  doubt  both  are 
given  frank  statement  in  his  long  letter  to  Colonel 
Carrington,  of  Virginia,  in  1792.  After  reviewing 
the,  to  him,  puzzling  growth  of  opposition  and  enmity 
to  his  work  on  the  part  of  Jefferson  and  Madison,  he 
said: 

"I  am  told  that  serious  apprehensions  are  dissemi-  Letter  to  Colonel 
nated  in  your  State  as  to  the  existence  of  a  monarchical  Carrington. 
party  meditating  the  destruction  of  State  and  repub- 
lican government.  If  it  is  possible  that  so  absurd  an 
idea  can  gain  ground,  it  is  necessary  that  it  should  be 
combatted.  I  assure  you,  on  my  private  faith  and 
honor  as  a  man,  that  there  is  not,  in  my  judgment,  a 
shadow  of  foundation  for  it.   *  *   * 

"As   to   the   destruction  of   State   governments,   the 


218 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Hamilton's  view 
of  republican 
government. 


Fear  lest  the  States 
should  cripple  the 
National 
government. 


Why  Hamilton 
desired  a  liberal 
construction  of 
the  Constitution. 


Frank  expression 
of  doubts  as  to 
the  success  of 
republican 
government. 


great  and  real  anxiety  is  to  be  able  to  preserve  the  na- 
tional from  the  too  potent  and  counteracting  influence 
of  those  governments.  As  to  my  own  political  creed,  I 
give  it  to  you  with  the  utmost  sincerity.  I  am  affection- 
ately attached  to  the  republican  theory.  I  desire  above 
all  things  to  see  the  equality  of  political  rights,  exclu- 
sive of  all  hereditary  distinction,  firmly  established  by  a 
practical  demonstration  of  its  being  consistent  with  the 
order  and  happiness  of  society.  As  to  State  govern- 
ments, the  prevailing  bias  of  my  judgment  is  that  if 
they  can  be  circumscribed  within  bounds,  consistent 
with  the  preservation  of  the  national  government,  they 
will  prove  useful  and  salutary.  *  *  *  As  the  thing  now 
is,  however,  I  acknowledge  the  most  serious  apprehen- 
sions, that  the  government  of  the  United  States  will  not 
be  able  to  maintain  itself  against  their  influence.  I  see 
that  influence  already  penetrating  into  the  national 
councils  and  preventing  their  direction.  Hence,  a  dis- 
position on  my  part  towards  a  liberal  construction  of 
the  powers  of  the  national  government,  and  to  erect  ev- 
ery fence  to  guard  it  from  depredations,  which  is,  in  my 
opinion,  consistent  with  constitutional  propriety.  As  to 
any  combination  to  prostrate  the  State  governments,  I 
disavow  and  deny  it.  *  *  * 

"I  said  that  I  was  affectionately  attached  to  the  re- 
publican theory.  *  *  *  I  add  that  I  have  strong  hopes 
of  the  success  of  that  theory;  but,  in  candor,  I  ought 
also  to  add  that  I  am  far  from  being  without  doubts. 
I  consider  its  success  as  yet  a  problem.  It  is  yet  to  be 
determined  by  experience  whether  it  be  consistent  with 
that  stability  and  order  in  government  which  are  essen- 
tial to  public  strength  and  private  security  and  happi- 


ness 


55* 


*  Hamilton,   in   Letter  to  Colonel   Edward   Carrington,   Philadelphia, 
May  26,  1792:     Works,  Vol.  IX,  pp.  532-534. 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  219 

Nothing  could  show  better  than  this  statement  by  Evidence  of  the 
the  chief  initiator  and  strongest  leader  of  the  Federal  chaScTeTof  our 
Government,  how  experimental  our  Republic  was  in  institutions  in 

i  •  i  t   •      their  early 

its  early  phases,  lhat  the  wise  and  temperate  politi-  history. 
cal  philosophy,  with  the  mingled  faith  and  doubt,  ex- 
pressed in  the  above  passage,  was  sincerely  Hamil- 
ton's, his  whole  career  attests.  When  one  remem- 
bers, in  contrast,  Jefferson's  enthusiastic  and  unques- 
tioning faith  in  democracy  and  his  distrust  of  central- 

■i  ,     •,    •  ,  j        ,        i   i  •  •      Contrast  between 

ized  government,  it  is  easy  to  understand  his  suspi-  Hamilton's 
cions  as  to  Hamilton's  motives  and  his  growing  oppo-  questioning  and 

e>  o     xrr         Jefferson  s 

sition  to  Hamilton's  measures.  enthusiastic  faith 

Jefferson,  moreover,  never  understood  Hamilton's  *' 

funding  plans,  and  was  suspicious  of  them  as  merely 

an  instrument  of  corruption.    In  his  Anas  Jefferson 

went  so  far  as  to  say : 

"Hamilton  was  not  only  a  monarchist,  but  for  a  mon- 
archy bottomed  on  corruption. 


"Hamilton  was,  indeed,  a  singular  character.  Of 
acute  understanding,  disinterested,  honest,  and  honor-  Jefferson's111 
able  in  all  private  transactions,  amiable  in  society,  and  matured  estimate 
duly  valuing  virtue  in  private  life,  yet  so  bewitched  and 
perverted  by  the  British  example,  as  to  be  under  thor- 
ough conviction  that  corruption  was  essential  to  the 
government  of  a  nation."* 

The  fairness  of  Jefferson's  personal  estimate  is 
only  equalled  by  the  injustice  of  his  judgment  of 
Hamilton  as  statesman  and  the  almost  childish  re- 


of  Hamilton  as 
statesman. 


*  Jefferson,  Anas :     Writings,  Vol.  I,  pp.  278,  279. 


220 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Madison's  share 
in  the  controversy. 


Philip  Freneau 
and  the  attacks  in 
the  opposition 
newspaper. 


The  attack  in 
Congress. 


sentment  of  Britain;  but  that  was  Jefferson's  deep- 
seated  conviction. 

Himself  disliking  a  controversy,  Jefferson  looked 
about  for  someone  to  answer  Hamilton,  and  chose 
James  Madison.  Madison  tried  a  time  or  two;  and 
got  his  fingers  burned.  Nobody  could  answer  Hamil- 
ton. He  had  the  most  trenchant  pen,  the  most  con- 
vincing logic,  the  clearest  grasp  of  the  infant  nation's 
needs,  the  most  dominating  force  of  any  man  in  Amer- 
ica, at  that  time.  So  James  Madison  quit ;  and  Jef- 
ferson tried  less  direct  methods.  He  found  a  young 
literary  man,  Philip  Freneau,  and  gave  him  a  minor 
place  in  the  State  department,  apparently  on  condi- 
tion that  Freneau  should  edit  and  publish  an  opposi- 
tion newspaper  in  Philadelphia.  The  plan  was  carried 
out;  and  in  Freneau's  newspaper  appeared  attacks 
upon  Hamilton,  John  Adams,  other  Federalist  lead- 
ers and,  finally,  upon  Washington. 

Afterwards,  Freneau  publicly  testified  that  Jeffer- 
son never  wrote  nor  inspired  one  of  those  attacks. 
Later,  he  stated  privately  that  Jefferson  wrote  many 
of  them  and  inspired  them  all.  You  may  take  your 
choice :  one  or  the  other  time  Philip  Freneau  lied. 

The  attacks  upon  Hamilton  got  into  Congress, 
where  certain  of  the  lesser  leaders  offered  a  resolu- 
tion that  Hamilton  had  broken  the  law,  exceeded  his 
authority  and  misused  the  funds  of  his  department. 
A  complete  accounting  was  demanded.  Consider  the 
situation:  Hamilton  had  had  to  build  the  Treasury 
department  from  nothing,  while  dealing  with  the  com- 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  221 

plicated  masses  of  internal  and  external  debt,  and 
fighting  the  incessant  battle  for  government  authority. 
A  satisfactory  accounting  would  have  seemed  almost 
a  miracle.     He  had  done  his  work  so  faithfully  and  Hamilton's 
kept  his  accounts  so  accurately  that  he  was  able  in  a  accounting 
brief  time  to  furnish  a  complete  report,  accounting  ^nerSFoif6 
for  every  penny  that  had  passed  through  the  depart- 
ment, since  its  inauguration.    He  was  completely  ex- 
onerated.    The  next  year  an  attempt  was  made  to 
revive  the  charges;  but  it  died  in  committee:  there 
was  no  use:    Hamilton's  record  was  too  entirely  un- 
impeachable. 

In  1794,  there  came  the  only  serious  challenging  by 
force,  of  the  Federal  Government,  until  the  Civil 
War.    One  of  the  earliest  taxes  to  be  laid  by  the  Fed-   Rebellion :  the 
eral  Government  was,  rightly,  the  excise  tax  on  intox-   resfstanc^to  the 
icating  liquors.    This  caused  bitter  resentment,  which  National 

.        ,   .  -~  -i         .  t  government. 

came  to  a  head  m  western  Pennsylvania,  where  the 
Scotch  Irish  liked  their  liquor  straight  and  untaxed. 
The  resistance  assumed  the  proportions  of  a  rebellion. 
Instantly  Hamilton  saw  the  significance.  It  was  not 
a  matter  of  putting  down  some  hundreds  or  thousands 
of  recalcitrants  in  western  Pennsylvania.  The  issue 
was:  is  the  Federal  Government  to  lay  and  collect 
taxes,  carrying  on  the  business  of  government,  peace- 
ably and  with  orderly  authority,  or  is  it  not? 

Hamilton  therefore  asked  Washington  if  he  might 
raise  the  army  to  put  down  the  rebellion.    Now  he  was  recognition  of 
not  Secretary  of  War:  Knox  held  that  office;  but,  of  ^™fng7he 
course,  the  attack  was  on  the  Treasury  department.  rebelli<>n- 


222 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Resignation  from 
the  Treasury. 


Circumstances 
making  Hamilton 
boss  of  the 
Federalist  party; 
thus  increasingly 
the  politician. 


Washington  consented;  and  Hamilton  raised  10,000 
infantry  and  2,000  cavalry;  marching  with  Washing- 
ton at  the  head  of  the  troops  into  Pennsylvania.  When 
the  rebels  saw  the  size  of  the  force  coming  against 
them,  they — well,  they  just  evaporated.  When  the 
army  got  well  into  Pennsylvania,  there  were  no  rebels 
there.  Thus  Hamilton  suppressed,  practically  blood- 
lessly,  the  only  active  challenging  of  the  Federal  Gov- 
ernment till  the  Civil  War. 

The  following  year,  1795,  feeling  that  his  work  in 
the  Treasury  was  largely  accomplished,  he  resigned  to 
resume  his  law  practice.  With  an  expensive  family, 
it  was  difficult  to  live  on  his  secretarial  salary.  He 
could  not  escape  politics,  however.  The  members  of 
the  Cabinet  and  other  leaders  came  continually  to 
consult  him,  as  the  chief  figure  among  those  who  had 
moulded  the  government;  and  thus,  without  wishing 
it,  he  was  pushed  into  the  position  of  boss  of  the  Fed- 
eralist party.  This  helps  to  explain  the  increase  in 
the  politician  as  compared  with  the  statesman,  in 
Hamilton's  later  years. 

When  Washington,  in  1796,  peremptorily  refus- 
ing to  consider  a  third  term,  wished  to  give  a  farewell 
message  to  the  American  people,  he  turned  to  his  asso- 
ciate and  old-time  secretary  for  help.  Before  the  close 
of  his  first  term,  he  had  asked  similar  assistance  of 
James  Madison.  His  mind  now  definitely  made  up, 
Washington  jotted  down  the  ideas  he  wanted  to  cover; 
but  reluctant,  as  always,  to  take  his  pen  in  hand,  he 
handed  the  paper,  with  probably  Madison's  sketch,  to 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  223 

Hamilton,  and  asked  him  to  draft  an  address,  on  the 
basis  of  these  points.  Hamilton  did  so ;  and  Washing- 
ton was  so  pleased  with  the  draft  that  he  adopted  it, 
and  apparently,  with  a  few  changes,  issued  it  as  his  Drafting 
Farewell  Address  to  the  American  People.  Do  not  ^arewTn  Address. 
forget,  next  time  you  read  that  classic,  that  it  is  the 
work  of  two  minds :  the  ideas  of  the  great  chief,  elab- 
orated and  expressed,  as  in  the  early  years  of  the  Rev- 
olution, by  his  life  long  co-worker  and  old-time  secre- 
tary, Hamilton. 

The  worst  attack  of  all,  upon  Hamilton,  came  in 

,wnw      ,  n,  i  •  ,.  ,      a  ,    t_v       The  attack  upon 

1797,  two  years  alter  his  retirement  from  public  Hamilton  in  1797. 
office.  Back  in  1792,  when  he  was  in  the  thick  of  the 
fight  in  the  Treasury  department,  two  scoundrels, 
Clingman  and  Reynolds,  were  thrown  into  jail,  ac- 
cused of  suborning  perjury  to  obtain  money  on  claims 
against  the  government.  They  let  it  be  known  that 
they  had  some  hold  on  a  high  officer  of  the  govern- 
ment; and  Muhlenberg,  speaker  of  the  House,  went 
to  see  them.  They  showed  him  certain  letters  from 
Hamilton,  and  told  him  Hamilton  had  conspired  with 
them  to  defraud  the  government.  While  not  believ- 
ing the  charge,  Muhlenberg,  being  a  Congressman, 
felt  the  matter  must  be  investigated.  He  took  two 
other  congressmen,  Venable  and  James  Monroe;  and 
the  three  called  upon  Hamilton,  and  informed  him 
of  the  charges. 

Hamilton  frankly  laid  the  whole  private  matter 
before  them.  He  told  them  that,  during  one  of  the 
long  periods  in  the  country's  service,  a  handsome, 


224 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Hamilton's 
publication  of  the 
Reynolds 
pamphlet. 


vulgar  woman,  Mrs.  Reynolds,  had  called  upon  him, 
telling  him  she  had  been  abandoned  by  her  husband, 
was  in  dire  need,  and  asked  him  for  a  little  money. 
Hamilton  told  them  he  had  gone  to  see  her,  had  given 
her  some  money,  and  quickly  discovered  that,  as  he 
expressed  it,  she  was  open  to  other  consolation  as 
well.  He  explained  that  he  had  become  involved  in 
an  unworthy  relation  with  her;  then  an  alleged  hus- 
band had  appeared  on  the  scene,  and  they  had  black- 
mailed him.  Yes,  he  had  given  them  a  thousand  dol- 
lars, in  two  payments,  and  other  small  sums,  disguised 
as  loans.  He  turned  over  all  the  papers  in  the  case 
to  the  three  Congressmen,  who  took  them  for  exam- 
ination ;  and  returning  them,  apologized  to  Hamilton 
for  having  bothered  him. 

After  Washington's  retirement,  however,  when 
party  bitterness  grew  to  an  intense  pitch,  hardly 
equalled  subsequently,  except  just  before  the  Civil 
War,  James  Monroe,  who  had  unfairly  kept  copies  of 
certain  of  the  papers,  allowed  them  to  get  into  print. 
The  object,  of  course,  was  to  destroy  Hamilton's 
leadership  of  the  Federalist  party.  Hamilton  de- 
manded a  full  statement  from  Monroe,  who  had  com- 
pletely exonerated  him  as  a  public  servant ;  but  Mon- 
roe temporized  and  evaded.  Then  Hamilton  did  the 
amazing  thing,  the  thing  his  enemies  never  dreamed 
he  would  dare  to  do:  he  published  the  whole  affair 
in  the  Reynolds  pamphlet:  all  Mrs.  Reynolds's  pas- 
sionate, misspelled  letters,  her  husband's  blackmailing 
letters,  Hamilton's  replies:  there  they  were:  fifty-two 


Scotland. 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  225 

documents  in  all.  Hamilton  accompanied  the  docu- 
ments with  a  statement,  in  the  course  of  which  he 
said,  that  he  was  sorry  to  have  to  do  this,  especially 
as  it  would  give  pain  to  one  whom  he  dearly  loved 
(of  course,  his  wife,  with  whom  he  had  long  since 
made  his  peace)  ;  but  his  honor  as  a  public  man  com- 
pelled it.  The  result  was  complete  and  permanent 
exoneration  of  his  character  as  a  public  man  and 
statesman,  but  grave  private  humiliation. 

In  1797,  the  year  of  this  most  virulent  attack,  Ham- 
ilton wrote  a  long  letter  to  a  relative  in  Scotland,  of  Significance  of 

!r  Hamilton's  brief 

the  same  name.  His  great  achievement  and  fame  had  story  of  his  life, 
evidently  aroused  his  Scotch  relatives  to  claim  the  re-  relative  In** 
lationship!  The  letter  is  a  brief,  modest  autobiog- 
raphy. As  it  gives,  best  of  all  surviving  documents, 
Hamilton's  view  of  his  own  life,  answers  many  criti- 
cisms, and  shows,  at  once,  why  he  undertook  the  thank- 
less task  of  the  Treasury  department  and  why  he  re- 
tired from  public  office,  it  is  quoted  entire : 

"Albany,  State  of  New  York, 
May  the  2nd,  1797. 
"My  dear  Sir :  Some  days  since  I  received  with  great 
pleasure  your  letter  of  the  10th  of  March.  The  mark 
it  affords  of  your  kind  attention,  and  the  particular  ac- 
count it  gives  me  of  so  many  relatives  in  Scotland,  are 
extremely  gratifying  to  me.  You  no  doubt  have  under- 
stood that  my  father's  affairs  at  a  very  early  day  went 
to  wreck ;  so  as  to  have  rendered  his  situation  during 
the  greatest  part  of  his  life  far  from  eligible.  This 
state  of  things  occasioned  a  separation  between  him 
and  me,  when  I  was  very  young,  and  threw  me  upon 


226 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Modest  reference 
to  his  brilliant 
storming  of   the 
redoubt  at 
Yorktown. 


Why  Hamilton 
undertook  the 
Treasury 
Secretaryship. 


the  bounty  of  my  mother's  relatives,  some  of  whom  were 
then  wealthy,  though  by  vicissitudes  to  which  human  af- 
fairs are  so  liable,  they  have  been  since  much  reduced 
and  broken  up.  Myself  at  about  sixteen  came  to  this 
country.  Having  always  had  a  strong  propensity  to 
literary  pursuits,  by  a  course  of  study  and  laborious  ex- 
ertion I  was  able,  by  the  age  of  nineteen,  to  qualify  my- 
self for  the  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Arts  in  the  College  of 
New  York,  and  to  lay  the  foundation  for  preparatory 
study  for  the  future  profession  of  the  law. 

"The  American  Revolution  intervened.  My  princi- 
ples led  me  to  take  part  in  it ;  at  nineteen  I  entered  into 
the  American  army  as  Captain  of  Artillery.  Shortly 
after  I  became,  by  invitation,  aid-de-camp  to  General 
Washington,  in  which  station  I  served  till  the  com- 
mencement of  that  campaign  which  ended  with  the  siege 
of  York  in  Virginia,  and  the  capture  of  Cornwallis's 
army.  The  campaign  I  made  at  the  head  of  a  corps  of 
light  infantry,  with  which  I  was  present  at  the  siege  of 
York,  and  engaged  in  some  interesting  operations. 

"At  the  period  of  the  peace  of  Great  Britain,  I  found 
myself  a  member  of  Congress  by  appointment  of  the 
Legislature  of  this  State. 

"After  the  peace,  I  settled  in  the  city  of  New  York, 
in  the  practice  of  the  law,  and  was  in  a  very  lucrative 
course  of  practice,  when  the  derangement  of  our  public 
affairs,  by  the  feebleness  of  the  general  confederation, 
drew  me  again  reluctantly  into  public  life.  I  became  a 
member  of  the  Convention  which  framed  the  present 
Constitution  of  the  United  States ;  and  having  taken 
part  in  this  measure,  I  conceived  myself  to  be  under  an 
obligation  to  lend  my  aid  towards  putting  the  machine 
in  some  regular  motion.  Hence,  I  did  not  hesitate  to 
accept  the  offer  of  President  Washington  to  undertake 
the  office  of  Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 


227 


"In  that  office  I  met  with  many  intrinsic  difficulties, 
and  many  artificial  ones,  proceeding  from  passions,  not 
very  worthy,  common  to  human  nature,  and  which  act 
with  peculiar  force  in  republics.  The  object,  however, 
was  effected  of  establishing  public  credit  and  introduce 
ing  order  in  the  finances. 

"Public  office  in  this  country  has  few  attractions. 
The  pecuniary  emolument  is  so  inconsiderable  as  to 
amount  to  a  sacrifice  to  any  man  who  can  employ  his 
time  with  advantage  in  any  liberal  profession.  The  op- 
portunity of  doing  good,  from  the  jealousy  of  power 
and  the  spirit  of  faction,  is  too  small  in  any  station  to 
warrant  a  long  continuance  of  private  sacrifices.  The 
enterprises  of  party  had  so  far  succeeded  as  materially 
to  weaken  the  necessary  influence  and  energy  of  the 
executive  authority,  and  so  far  diminish  the  power  of 
doing  good  in  that  department,  as  greatly  to  take  away 
the  motives  which  a  virtuous  man  might  have  for  mak- 
ing sacrifices.  The  prospect  was  even  bad  for  gratify- 
ing in  future  the  love  of  fame,  if  that  passion  was  to  be 
the  spring  of  action. 

"The  union  of  these  motives,  with  the  reflections  of 
prudence  in  relation  to  a  growing  family,  determined 
me  as  soon  as  my  plan  had  attained  a  certain  maturity, 
to  withdraw  from  office.  This  I  did  by  a  resignation 
about  two  years  since,  when  I  resumed  the  profession  of 
the  law  in  the  City  of  New  York  under  every  advantage 
I  could  desire. 

"It  is  a  pleasant  reflection  to  me,  that  since  the  com- 
mencement of  my  connection  with  General  Washington 
to  the  present  time,  I  have  possessed  a  flattering  share 
of  his  confidence  and  friendship. 

"Having  given  you  a  brief  sketch  of  my  political  ca- 
reer, I  proceed  to  some  further  family  details. 

"In  the  year  1780  I  married  the  second  daughter  of 


The  simple 
reference   to   his 
great  achievement. 


The  bitter  lessons 
and  mood  of 
pessimism, 
resulting  from 
Hamilton's 
experiences  as 
statesman. 


Reasons  for 
retiring  from 
public  office. 


Reverence  and 
friendship  for 
Washington. 


228 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Happiness  of 
Hamilton's 
domestic  life. 


Evidence  of 
Hamilton's  later 
relations  with  his 
father. 


General  Schuyler,  a  gentleman  of  one  of  the  best  fam- 
ilies of  this  country,  of  large  fortune,  and  no  less  per- 
sonal and  political  consequence.  It  is  impossible  to  be 
happier  than  I  am  in  a  wife ;  and  I  have  five  children, 
four  sons  and  a  daughter,  the  eldest  a  son  somewhat 
past  fifteen,  who  all  promise  as  well  as  their  years  per- 
mit, and  yield  me  much  satisfaction.  Though  I  have 
been  too  much  in  public  life  to  be  wealthy,  my  situation 
is  extremely  comfortable,  and  leaves  me  nothing  to  wish 
but  a  continuance  of  health.  With  this  blessing,  the 
profits  of  my  profession  and  other  prospects  authorize 
an  expectation  of  such  addition  to  my  resources  as  will 
render  the  eve  of  life  easy  and  agreeable,  so  far  as  may 
depend  on  this  consideration. 

"It  is  now  several  months  since  I  have  heard  from 
my  father,  who  continued  at  the  island  of  St.  Vincent. 
My  anxiety  at  this  silence  would  be  greater  than  it  is, 
were  it  not  for  the  considerable  interruption  and  pre- 
cariousness  of  intercourse  which  is  produced  by  the 
war. 

"I  have  strongly  pressed  the  old  gentleman  to  come 
and  reside  with  me,  which  would  afford  him  every  en- 
joyment of  which  his  advanced  age  is  capable;  but  he 
has  declined  it  on  the  ground  that  the  advice  of  his 
physicians  leads  him  to  fear  that  the  change  of  climate 
would  be  fatal  to  him.  The  next  thing  for  me  is,  in  pro- 
portion to  my  means,  to  endeavor  to  increase  his  com- 
forts where  he  is. 

"It  will  give  me  the  greatest  pleasure  to  receive  your 
son  Robert  at  my  house  in  New  York,  and  still  more 
to  be  of  use  to  him;  to  which  end,  my  recommendation 
and  interest  will  not  be  wanting,  and  I  hope  not  un- 
availing. It  is  my  intention  to  embrace  the  opening 
which  your  letter  affords  me  to  extend  my  intercourse 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON 


229 


with  my  relatives  in  your  country,  which  will  be  a  new 
source  of  satisfaction  to  me."* 

When  John  Adams  succeeded  Washington  as 
president,  he  took  over  the  existing  Cabinet,  whose 
members,  as  we  have  seen,  went  constantly  to  consult 
Hamilton.  This  greatly  displeased  Adams,  who, 
forceful  and  opinionated,  felt  that  he  was  quite  able 
to  run  the  government  without  outside  help  or  inter- 
ference. His  consequent  growing  dislike  of  Hamilton 
was  a  case  of  one  strong  man  resenting  another.  Then 
came  the  scare  of  war  with  France,  over  the  X  Y  Z 
Letters,  and  Adams's  appointment  of  Washington, 
as  Commander-in-Chief,  to  raise  an  army.  Washing- 
ton accepted,  on  condition  that  he  be  privileged  to  ap- 
point his  subordinate  generals ;  and  named  Hamilton, 
Pinckney  and  Knox.  Adams,  disliking  Hamilton, 
wished  to  reverse  the  order,  and  commission  Knox, 
Pinckney  and  Hamilton.  Washington  said  No,  Col- 
onel Hamilton  is  the  younger  man,  he  has  worked 
with  me  and  understands  my  methods,  I  want  him 
next  under  me.  Well,  even  forceful  John  Adams 
could  not  oppose  George  Washington;  so  he  gritted 
his  teeth  and  issued  the  commissions,  Hamilton, 
Pinckney  and  Knox;  and  hated  Hamilton  all  the 
more.  On  one  occasion  Adams  referred  to  Hamilton 
as  "the  bastard  brat  of  a  Scotch  pedlar".  That  was 
unworthy  and  unfair;  but  he  said  it.    Meantime,  the 


President  Adams's 
resentment  toward 
Hamilton. 


The  X  Y  Z 
Letters. 


Appointment  of 
Hamilton  as  first 
General  under 
Washington. 


*  Hamilton,    letter    to    his    Scotch    relative,    Alexander    Hamilton: 
Works,  Vol.  X,  pp.  257-261. 


230 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Hamilton's  reply 
to  the  accusation 
of  leading  a 
British  faction. 


Circumstances  of 
the   publication   of 
Hamilton's 
pamphlet  on 
The  Public 
Character  and 
Conduct  of  John 
Adams. 


war  scare  blew  over,  leaving  Hamilton  Inspector  Gen- 
eral of  the  army. 

Then  came  the  foolish  enactment,  against  Hamil- 
ton's warning,  of  the  vicious  alien  and  sedition  laws, 
with  the  consequent  wrecking  of  the  Federalist  party. 
After  Washington's  death,  President  Adams,  in  a 
rage  with  Hamilton,  got  rid  of  Hamilton's  remaining 
friends  in  the  Cabinet. 

During  the  last  year  of  President  Adams's  admin- 
istration Hamilton  wrote  him  a  letter,  stating  that 
Adams  was  reported  to  have  declared  Hamilton  the 
leader  of  a  British  faction,  and  asking  if  the  Presi- 
dent had  made  such  a  charge.  Receiving  no  reply, 
Hamilton  waited  exactly  two  months,  and  then  wrote 
a  second  letter,  in  which  he  said: 

"This  much  I  affirm,  that  by  whomsoever  a  charge 
of  the  kind  mentioned  in  my  former  letter,  may,  at  any 
time,  have  been  made  or  insinuated  against  me,  it  is  a 
base,  wicked  and  cruel  calumny;  destitute  even  of  a 
plausible  pretext,  to  excuse  the  folly,  or  mark  the  de- 
pravity which  must  have  dictated  it."* 

The  result  of  all  this  was  that,  when  the  election  of 
1800  came,  Hamilton  prepared,  for  private  circula- 
tion among  the  Federalist  leaders,  a  pamphlet  on  The 
Public  Character  and  Conduct  of  John  Adams. 
Aaron  Burr,  his  rival  in  New  York  politics,  got  hold 
of  fragments  of  it  and  published  them,  compelling 
Hamilton  to  publish  the  whole,  in  self  defense.    Thus 


*  Hamilton,  in  letter  to  John  Adams  of  Oct.  1st,  1800:     Works,  Vol. 
VII,  p.  365. 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  231 

Hamilton  was  In  the  anomalous  position  of  support- 
ing John  Adams,  as  the  most  available  candidate  the 
Federalists  had  to  succeed  himself  in  the  presidency; 
yet  with  this  published  pamphlet,  severely  criticising 
the  candidate's  public  character  and  conduct.  It  was 
one  of  the  several  occasions  where  Hamilton  allowed 
his  passions  to  get  the  better  of  his  judgment  as 
statesman,  always,  of  course,  with  bad  consequences. 
There  was  thus  no  chance  for  Adams  to  carry  New 
York  State;  and  there  followed  the  equal  number  of 
votes  for  Jefferson  and  Burr,  in  the  electoral  college, 
throwing  the  election  into  the  Federalist  House,  Ha- 
ting Jefferson  as  the  outstanding  opposition  leader, 

_  _  .  Hamilton's  part  in 

the  House,  as  we  have  seen,  was  inclined  to  choose  making  Jefferson 
Burr,  until  Hamilton  intervened  to  give  the  election  resi  ent* 
to  the  one  who,  though  his  enemy,  he  recognized  to 
be  an  earnest  patriot,  as  against  the  man  he  had  come 
to  regard  as  an  unprincipled  adventurer.  Let  me  re- 
peat, it  was  one  of  the  great  and  magnanimous 
achievements  of  Hamilton's  career  that  his  influence 
made  Thomas  Jefferson  President  of  the  United 
States. 

Naturally,  Burr's  hatred  of  Hamilton  was  in- 
creased. When  they  were  both  stripling  young  offi-  ^ed  of°Wing 
cers  in  the  Revolution,  Burr  and  Hamilton  had  been  Hamilton- 
friends ;  but  Burr's  political  methods  aroused  Hamil- 
ton's distrust,  and  he  came  to  regard  Burr  as  an  un- 
principled adventurer.  When,  in  1791,  Burr  was 
elected  to  the  national  Senate,  in  place  of  General 
Schuyler,  the  circumstances  were  such  as  to  make 


232 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  challenge 
to  a  duel. 


Reasons  for 
Hamilton's 
acceptance  of 
Burr's  challenge. 


Hamilton  intensely  bitter.  As  time  went  on,  Hamil- 
ton attacked  Burr,  in  letters  to  other  statesmen,  with 
increasing  venom:  a  further  example  of  the  clouding 
of  his  statesmanship  by  his  passions.  Burr  waited 
until  the  attacks  became  semi-public,  and  demanded 
an  explanation.  Hamilton  gave  one  which  Burr  de- 
clared unsatisfactory;  and  challenged  Hamilton  to 
a  duel. 

Why  did  Hamilton  accept?  He  hated  the  whole 
vicious  duelling  system.  It  is  true,  early  in  life,  he 
had  served  as  second  to  Laurens,  in  the  duel  with 
General  Charles  Lee,  over  the  latter's  scurrilous  at- 
tack on  Washington ;  but  that  was  in  military  affairs, 
and  the  honor  of  their  beloved  chief  was  in  question. 
Moreover,  some  years  before  Burrs  challenge,  Philip, 
Hamilton's  eldest  son,  outraged  by  the  vicious  attacks 
upon  his  father,  had  challenged  one  of  the  detractors, 
and  been  killed  in  a  duel  at  Weehawken,  to  his 
father's  deep  and  lasting  grief,  and  the  mental  break- 
down of  his  sister.  It  is  interesting  that  Hamilton's 
eighth  and  last  child,  born  in  1802,  was  also  named 
Philip  (Little  Philip,  he  was  called)  in  memory  of  the 
favorite  eldest  son,  who  had  gone  the  path  his  father 
shortly  followed. 

Why  then  did  Hamilton  accept?  The  writings  he 
left  answer  the  question  and  show  how  his  mind 
worked.  He  argued  with  himself:  I  am  the  head  of 
the  Federalist  party,  that  is,  of  the  group  of  men 
who  have  made  our  government.  If  I  decline  this 
challenge,  public  opinion  being  what  is  is,  I  shall  be 


ALEXANDER  HAMILTON  233 

stigmatized  as  a  coward,  and  my  leadership  destroyed. 
I  would  better  be  dead  than  have  that  happen.  If 
I  am  to  live,  I  must  go  on  serving  the  cause,  as  leader 
of  those  who  seek  to  foster  the  authority,  efficiency 
and  permanence  of  the  nation's  government.  He 
accepted. 

An  unusual  number  of  days  intervened  between  the 
acceptance  and  the  duel.     Hamilton  spent  the  time   JaySm^rJwmng 
setting  his  house  in  order,  in  the  endeavor  to  leave  his   Hamilton  spent 

.  .  them. 

family  in  not  too  difficult  circumstances,  in  the  event 
of  his  death.  He  had  earned  liberally,  but  spent 
freely.  His  family  had  occupied  several  homes  in 
New  York;  and  then,  wishing  ta  live  completely  in 
the  country,  Hamilton  had  gone  away  beyond  the  city 
and  built  The  Grange,  far  out  in  the  wilderness — at 
142nd  Street  and  10th  Avenue.  In  the  nights  before 
the  duel,  Hamilton  wrote  two  agonizingly  tender  love 
letters  to  his  wife.  Burr  spent  the  intervening  days  in  to  kill, 
pistol  practice  on  Long  Island:  he  meant  to  kill. 

The  duel  occurred  at  morn,  across  the  river  at 
Weehawken,  July  11th,  1804.  Hamilton's  pistol 
went  off  in  the  air :  he  had  said  that  he  would  not  fire 
upon  his  adversary.  Burr  shot  to  kill;  and  killed. 
Hamilton,  mortally  wounded,  was  carried  across  the  The  tragic  end  of 
river,  and  died  the  next  day,  July  12th,  1804:  forty- 
seven  and  a  half  years  old !  He  should  have  had  an- 
other thirty  years  of  service.  O,  maybe  his  work  was 
done:  the  battle  had  been  fought  through  and  the 
great  steps  taken  in  establishing  the  government.  In 
his  last  years,  Hamilton  had  been  increasingly  the 


234 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Effect  on  the 
country. 


The  long  life- 
loyalty  of 
Hamilton's  wife. 


politician,  as  compared  with  the  pure  statesman  of 
his  great  days:  maybe  his  great  work  was  done;  but 
if  he  had  gone  on  developing  and  serving,  what  might 
not  the  Hamilton  of  another  thirty  years  of  life  have 
done  for  us! 

The  whole  country  was  aroused  by  the  murder,  for 
as  such  it  was  regarded.  That  the  Vice  President  of 
the  United  States  should  murder  the  greatest  states- 
man in  it,  under  the  forms  of  a  duel,  so  shocked  the 
people,  that  it  did  more  than  anything  else  that  ever 
happened  to  eliminate  the  infamous  duelling  system. 
Understand,  it  was  a  long  time  before  it  went;  but 
the  murder  of  Hamilton  by  Burr  was  a  chief  cause  of 
its  passing. 

Hamilton's  wife  survived  him  fifty  years!  She 
spent  her  active  years,  during  that  half  century  of 
widowhood,  in  seeking  justice  for  her  husband's 
memory.  Hamilton's  son  grew  up,  and  wrote  the 
story  of  his  father's  life.  The  widow  finally  secured 
the  purchase  by  Congress  of  Hamilton's  papers,  in- 
suring their  being  kept  intact.  She  won  her  fight! 
When  she  came  to  die,  in  1854,  at  the  age  of  ninety- 
seven,  there  was  found  upon  her  breast,  enclosed  in  a 
little  bag,  tied  about  her  neck  with  a  piece  of  ribbon, 
the  faded  paper,  containing  the  love  verses  Hamilton 
had  written  to  her,  as  her  fiance,  seventy-four  years 
before. 


LEE :     THE  AMERICAN  WARRIOR 

THE  foregoing  essays  have  dealt  with  the  mak- 
ing of  the  Nation,  the  initiation  of  our  institu- 
tions, their  early  progress,  and  the  original  cleav- 
age in  political  philosophy,  based  on  opposing  views  of 
the  Constitution,  and  resulting  in  the  political  parties 
led  by  Hamilton  and  Jefferson.  We  come  now  to  the  ^^^nt£3 
culmination  of  that  cleavage,  in  the  terrible  trial  by  philosophy. 
fire,  through  which  the  Nation  was  reborn  and  present 
day  America  made  possible ;  studying  it  through  those 
two  outstanding  leaders,  Lee-  and  Lincoln,  to  whom 
the  opposing  sides  turned  in  fratricidal  conflict:  both 
Nature's  noblemen;  each  absolutely  consecrated  to 
his  cause. 

The  union  of  States  was  formed  under  the  whip 
of  necessity.     During  the  Revolution,  the  Colonies   The  Union  of  the 
were  compelled  to  make  common  cause,  establish  the   stat^  compelled 

r  'by  circumstances, 

weak  Continental  Congress,  and  loosely  confederate, 
in  order  to  pull  the  struggle  through  to  victorious  in- 
dependence. So,  in  those  dark  years  following  the 
Revolutionary  War,  the  infant  States  were  forced  to 
get  together,  make  a  Constitution,  unite  under  it  and 
establish  a  central  Federal  government,  to  be  able  to 
stand  on  their  feet  and  hold  up  a  self-respecting  face 
to  a  threatening  and  potentially  hostile  world. 

235 


236 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Doubts  of  the 

Union's 

permanence. 


Growth  in  the 
power  and 
authority  of 
the  Federal 
government. 


Free   trade    among 
the  States  as 
fostering   national 
unity, 


Effect  of  vast 
immigration  on 
the  nationalism 
of  the  North 
and  West. 


Those  who  formed  the  Union  doubtless  hoped  it 
would  last  permanently:  that  is  proved  by  the  fact 
that  there  is  no  provision  for  withdrawal  in  the  Con- 
stitution ;  but  it  was  hope  rather  than  clear  conviction. 
The  view  of  the  States  as  absolutely  sovereign  was 
universal;  and  even  the  strongest  supporters  of  a 
union  under  a  Federal  government,  such  as  Washing- 
ton and  Hamilton,  had  periods  of  depression  when 
they  questioned  its  continuance. 

Hamilton's  far  seeing  fight  had  borne  fruit,  how- 
ever, and  the  Federal  government  grew  rapidly  and 
steadily  in  power  and  authority.  This  resulted  in 
part  from  the  mere  expansion  of  the  country  in  terri- 
tory and  population.  The  larger  the  area  over  which 
a  government  functions,  other  things  being  equal,  the 
more  powerful  it  is  apt  to  become. 

The  absence  of  trade  restrictions  among  the  States 
tended  further  to  obliterate  the  older  State  attach- 
ments and  make  for  national  unity.  Free,  unham- 
pered commerce  is  one  of  the  most  unifying  forces 
known.  With  goods  and  persons  moving  freely  across 
the  State  borders,  those  lines  became  increasingly 
mere  convenient  political  divisions,  with  the  Nation 
the  unit  on  which  patriotic  feeling  centered. 

This  process  was  accentuated,  in  the  North  and 
West,  by  the  great  tide  of  immigration  that  flowed 
across  the  Atlantic  upon  our  shores,  in  multiplying 
volume.  Those  immigrants  came,  not  to  Massa- 
chusetts, Pennsylvania  or  Ohio:  they  came  to  Amer- 
ica, which  they  regarded  as  the  land  of  freedom  and 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  237 

opportunity.  They  were  scarcely  more  interested  in 
State  lines  than  in  County  and  City  divisions.  Their 
patriotism,  often  intense  in  character,  was  focussed, 
not  upon  the  State,  but  on  the  National  government, 
as  the  government  of  all  the  people  in  the  land. 

A  further  cause,  also  affecting  the  North  and  West, 
was  the  rapid  development  of  manufacturing  indus-   influence  of 

.  .,  ,.  .  .         ,  manufacturing 

tries.  An  industrial  population  is  notoriously  un-  industries  on  the 
stable,  moving  readily  from  place  to  place,  as  wages 
and  conditions  of  employment  vary.  That  growing 
population  had  no  tradition  of  attachment  to  the  State 
as  sovereign:  its  loyalty  also  centered  naturally  on 
the  government  of  the  Nation. 

Certain  of  these  causes  did  not  act,  to  the  same 
extent  upon  the  Sputh.    Little  of  that  tide  of  immi- 
gration went  south,  during  the  first  half  of  the  nine-    Survival  of  the 
teenth  century.    When  the  Civil  War  broke  out,  the   state  patriotism 
majority  of  people  living  in  the  south  Atlantic  states   ln  the  Soutn- 
had  been  born  upon  the  soil  where  they  lived.     They 
had  deeply  the  tradition  of  attachment  to  the  sover- 
eign State  government,  upon  which  patriotic  feeling 
had  originally  centered.    As  the  southwest  territories 
were  opened  up,  they  were  settled  chiefly  by  people 
from  the  south  Atlantic  states,  who  carried  with  them 
this  tradition  of  State  affiliation. 

The  South,  moreover,  remained  agricultural.     An 
agricultural  population  is  far  more  intensely  attached   Significance 

,  .,     ,  •      -,  •    t  r™       ttt      n   tit  that  the  South 

to  the  soil  than  an  industrial  one.     lhe  World  War  remained 
gave  an  impressive  illustration  of  that.     The  fervor  asncu  ura  • 
of  patriotism,  marking  the  French  people  in  the  war, 


238  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

came  in  no  small  measure  from  the  French  custom  of 
dividing  each  farm  among  all  the  children  of  a  family, 
so  that  each  peasant  has  his  little  strip  of  land,  which 
he  regards  as  a  bit  better  than  any  other  land  in 
France,  and  therefore  in  all  the  world.  It  was  largely 
the  attachment  of  the  French  peasant  to  the  soil  of 
France  that  gave  the  passionate  loyalty  France  dis- 
played in  the  war.  Conditions  of  argriculture  in  the 
South,  of  course,  differed  widely  from  those  in  mod- 
ern France;  but  there  was  a  similar  intense  local 
type  of  patriotism,  cherishing  the  tradition  of  State 
affiliation. 

Those    differences,    marking   the    South,   received 
Reasons  for  the      their  supreme  expression  in  old  Virginia.     Virginia 
SouThern^radition  had  a  great  tradition.    With  Massachusetts,  she  had 
in  old  Virginia.      called  for  a  union  of  the  Colonies  and  initiated  the 
Revolution.     She  had  declared  herself  independent 
of  Britain,  and  furnished  the  great  commander-in- 
chief  to  lead  the  American  forces  to  victory,  return- 
ing him  for  two  terms  as  first  President  of  the  infant 
Nation.     Traditionally  the  "Mother  of  Presidents," 
she  had  sent,  in  turn,  Jefferson,  Madison  and  Mon- 
roe to  follow  Washington  in  leadership  of  the  Nation. 
Her  population  was  largely  of  direct  English  de- 
scent, with  a  considerable  fraction  from  the  lesser 
British  nobility,     Virginia  was  the  most  impressive 
surviving  example  of  the  original  sovereign  State; 
and  the  devotion  of  her  people  to  her  was  particularly 
fervid.    All  this  was  behind  Robert  E.  Lee. 

Lee  was  born  at  Stratford,  Westmoreland  County, 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  239 

Virginia,  a  few  miles  from  the  birthplace  of  Washing- 
ton, January  19th,  1807,  of  best  Virginia  families  Lee's  father,  Light 
on  both  sides.  His  father  was  that  Light  Horse  Horse  Harry  Lee' 
Harry  Lee,  Washington's  beloved  young  comrade 
of  the  Revolution.  You  will  remember  his  excellent 
service,  at  Paulus  Hook  and  elsewhere.  He  was, 
indeed,  the  only  officer,  below  the  rank  of  general,  to 
be  voted  a  medal  by  the  Continental  Congress;  and  it 
was  he  whom  the  Congress  invited  to  give  the  Me- 
morial Address  over  Washington,  in  which  he  used 
those  words,  already  quoted  as  still  defining  our  view 
of  Washington,  that  he  was  "First  in  war,  first  in 
peace,  and  first  in  the  hearts  of  his  countrymen." 
Moreover,  some  biographers  identify  that  "Lowland 
Beauty,' '  as  Washington  called  her,  of  whom  he  was 
enamoured  in  his  youth  and  to  whom  he  wrote  those 
tender  but  rather  clumsy  verses,  as  the  same  girl  who 
afterwards  married  one  of  the  Lees  and  became  the 
mother  of  Light  Horse  Harry.  If  true,  this  would 
merely  help  to  explain  Washington's  attachment  for 
his  young  comrade  in  arms. 

Light  Horse  Harry  Lee  was  twice  married.    His    * 
second  wife  was  Anne  Carter,  of  the  eminent  Carter  Lee's  mother- 
family  in  Virginia;  and  her  third  son  was  Robert  E. 
Lee. 

When  Lee  was  a  child  of  four,  the  family  moved  to 
Alexandria,     near     Washington's     Mount     Vernon 
home,  to  secure  better  educational  opportunities  for 
the  children.     The  following  year,  the  War  of  1812  thT^Ly^anY 
broke  out;  and  President  Madison  commissioned  his  fa*her°f  Lees 


240  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

friend,  Light  Horse  Harry  Lee,  one  of  the  generals 
to  lead  the  army  of  invasion  into  Canada.  He  started 
North;  stopped  at  Baltimore.  There  was  a  riot  in 
that  city;  and  in  endeavoring  to  protect  a  friend,  a 
Federalist  editor,  from  the  mob,  Light  Horse  Harry 
Lee  was  injured.  He  went  to  the  West  Indies  in 
search  of  health;  did  not  get  better;  returned  to  an 
island  off  the  Georgia  coast,  the  home  of  General 
Nathanael  Greene,  his  comrade  of  the  Revolution; 
and  died  there  in  1818,  when  his  son  Robert,  was  a 
Parallel  with  boy  of  eleven.  Thus  Lee  had  the  misfortune,  at  the 
Washington.  age  Qf  eieven?  |0  }ose  j^g  father,  exactly  as  had  hap- 

pened to  Washington. 

Lee  was  the  main  stay  of  his  widowed  and  semi- 
Lee's  chivalry         invalid  mother,  treating  her  with  beautiful  courtesy 
and  tender  chivalry,  taking  upon  himself  the  cares  of 
the  household,   while   continuing  his   studies.     Lee 
differed  from  others  of  our  great  leaders  in  having 
Excellent  early       excellent   schooling.     He  was  thoroughly  prepared 

"  education.  for  Wegt   p^   haying  early   decided   to   foUow   the 

footsteps  of  his  father  in  a  military  career. 

One  of  Lee's  cousins  is  authority  for  the  statement 
that  it  was  Mrs.  Lewis,  the  Nellie  Custis  of  Mount 
Vernon,  Washington's  favorite  step -grandchild,  and 
the  aunt  of  the  girl  Lee  afterwards  married,  who  went 
with  the  young  Lee  to  Washington,  to  intercede 
with  General  Andrew  Jackson,  then  Senator  from 
PoinTat  Tennessee,  to  get  Lee  admitted  to  West  Point.     In 

eighteen.  any  case?  he  was  admitted  at  the  age  of  eighteen. 

Then,  as  now,  the  discipline  was  strict  and  the  cur- 


Remarkable  record 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  241 

riculum  hard.  Lee  went  through  his  four  years  with- 
out a  single  demerit  mark.  He  was  early  cadet 
officer;  then  adjutant  of  the  entire  batallion,  the  most 
coveted  honor  at  West  Point;  and  he  was  graduated 
second  in  a  class  of  forty-six.  Taking  those  facts  to-  a*  West  Point. 
gether,  they  make  an  almost  unequalled  record  for 
the  whole  history  of  West  Point. 

Then,  as  today,  the  engineers  were  the  aristocracy 
of  the  army.  Lee  entered  that  corps;  and  his  first 
service  was  at  Hampton  Roads,  where  he  was  em- 
ployed in  improving  the  fortifications  of  the  harbor.  HamPtonVRoad9 
While  on  this  service,  Lee  made  frequent  visits  to 
Arlington,  the  beautiful  home  of  George  Wash- 
ington Parke  Custis,  Washington's  step-grandchild, 
adopted,  with  his  sister,  as  Washington's  own  chil- 
dren, after  the  death  of  the  father,  Jack  Custis,  when 
Washington  became  convinced  he  was  not  to  have  a 
direct  heir. 

Here  at  Arlington,  Lee  resumed  what  had  been  a 
boy  and  girl  friendship  with  Mary  Parke  Custis, 
daughter  of  the  family.    A  warm  love  affair  quickly  \ 

developed.     There  seems  to  have  been  some  opposi-  Lee's  engagement 

,  •  ,  ,  ,1  ,        (*    ,1  and  marriage  to 

tion  to  an  engagement,  on  the  part  of  the  young  Mary  Parke 

woman's  parents,  owing  to  Lee's  limited  financial  cir-  Custls- 

cumstances ;  but  the  young  persons  succeeded  quickly 

in  overcoming  this  opposition;  and  the  year  that  Lee 

was  twenty-four,  he  and  Mary  Parke  Custis  were  Bonds  between 

married.  Lee's  family 

and  that  of 

Thus  Lee's  marriage  added  a  further  bond,  to  the  Washington. 
many  already  existing,  between  his  family  and  that 


242 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Washington  as 
Lee's  hero  and 
model. 


Identity  of 
character  in  Lee 
and  Washington. 


Domestic  life. 


of  Washington.  Very  early  in  life,  Lee  had  deliber- 
ately chosen  Washington  as  his  hero  and  model.  His 
whole  conduct  and  career  were  consciously  moulded 
on  the  example  of  Washington;  and  it  is  interesting 
to  note  how  many  characteristics  were  the  same  in 
both  men.  Lee  had  Washington's  absolute  integrity, 
his  devotion  to  duty.  Lee  said  repeatedly  that  "duty 
is  the  noblest  word  in  our  language";  and  he  made 
it  the  guiding  principle  in  his  conduct  of  life.  He 
had  Washington's  courage  and  patient  endurance, 
Washington's  modesty  and  selflessness.  Moreover  in 
the  crisis  of  his  career,  Lee  dreamed  of  achieving,  for 
his  State  and  section,  what  Washington  had  won  for 
the  whole  group  of  Colonies,  namely,  complete  in- 
dependence from  what  he  had  come  to  regard  as  ex- 
ternal tyranny. 

Lee's  marriage,  resulting  from  the  warm  and 
tender  love  affair,  was  lived  with  entire  loyalty 
through  his  whole  life.  No  breath  of  scandal  ever 
touched  the  personal  character  and  conduct  of  Robert 
E.  Lee.  Seven  children  were  born  of  the  union,  all 
growing  up  to  maturity.  Three  of  Lee's  sons  became 
officers  in  the  Confederate  army,  and  two  of  them 
reached  the  rank  of  Major  General.  Lee's  letters 
to  his  wife  and  children  are  beautiful  combinations  of 
tenderness  and  affection  with  that  reserve,  that 
marked  him  as  it  did  Washington.  Lee  had  more 
introspection  than  Washington;  otherwise  their  char- 
acteristics seem  the  same. 

A  few  months  after  Lee's  marriage,  a  terrible  series 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  243 

of  events  occurred  in  the  southeastern  corner  of  Vir- 
ginia. A  certain  Nat  Turner,  negro  slave  and  half- 
crazed  religious  fanatic,  believing  himself  called  of 

~     ,  ,  ,°  ,  i  •  i  ,  .  .        The  Nat  Turner 

God  to  redeem  and  revenge  his  people,  and  seeing  in  rebellion, 
the  heavens  signs  that  the  hour  had  struck,  started  on 
a  murdering  expedition.  He  associated  other  negroes 
with  him,  and  others  were  forced  to  join  the  band;  in 
the  end  it  numbered  fifty-three.  Five  of  the  family 
of  Turner's  master  were  murdered  in  their  beds.  The 
only  white  persons  in  the  neighborhood  who  escaped 
were  those  protected  by  faithful  slaves.  In  all,  fifty- 
seven  whites  were  murdered,  including  all  the  chil- 
dren in  a  school.  Bands  of  white  men  gathered  to- 
gether, troops  were  sent  from  Fortress  Monroe,  the 
negroes  were  hunted  down;  and  the  leaders  were,  not 
lynched,  but  tried,  convicted  and  legally  hanged. 

This  rebellion  produced  a  terrible  impression  all 
over  the  South.    It  wakened  the  southern  people  to  a   Far  reaching 
realization  of  the  slumbering  volcano  on  which  they  Turner  Rebellion 
were  living,  and  to  what  would  happen  were  that   on  the  South- 
volcano  suddenly  to  explode.    The  result  was  severer 
laws  regarding  freed  negroes,  stricter  treatment  of 
slaves  and  a  general  stopping  of  the  wide   spread 
movement  for  gradually  emancipating  the  slaves,  then 
on  all  over  the  South. 

This  series  of  events  produced  a  deep  impression 
on  Lee.  His  letters  to  his  wife,  at  the  time,  show  how 
profoundly  he  was  affected  by  them.  Please  remem- 
ber this  series  of  events :  it  had  much  to  do  with  what 
followed. 


244 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Lee's  work  at 
St.  Louis. 


The  years  of 
service  in  New 
York  harbor. 


After  Hampton  Roads,  Lee's  next  important  work 
was  at  St.  Louis.  The  channel  of  the  Mississippi  was 
changing,  threatening  a  part  of  the  city;  and  St. 
Louis  appealed  for  help  to  General  Scott,  head  of 
the  United  States  army.  General  Scott  responded 
that  he  knew  but  one  man  capable  of  meeting  the 
problem.  He  said,  "He  is  young,  but  if  the  work 
can  be  done,  he  can  do  it" ;  and  recommended  Robert 
E.  Lee. 

Lee  went  to  St.  Louis.  The  work  went  forward 
thoroughly,  but  slowly.  The  people  of  St.  Louis  be- 
came impatient.  It  is  said  that  a  cannon  was  even 
placed  where  it  could  be  fired  upon  Lee  and  his  men, 
if  desired.  Lee  said,  "They  can  do  as  they  like  with 
their  own,  but  I  was  sent  here  to  do  certain  work,  and 
I  shall  do  it;"  and  he  did  it,  so  efficiently,  that  the 
present  channel  of  the  Mississippi  river,  at  St.  Louis, 
is  determined  by  the  great  existing  bulwarks,  erected 
by  Robert  E.  Lee. 

Earlier,  Lee  had  surveyed  the  upper  Mississippi, 
and  opened  it  to  navigation ;  and  his  report  to  the  gov- 
ernment really  determined  our  present  national  policy 
on  inland  water  ways. 

At  thirty-five,  Lee  was  sent  to  New  York,  to  im- 
prove the  harbor  defenses.  He  lived  for  several  years 
at  Fort  Hamilton.  He  issued  from  this  work  with  the 
rank  of  captain,  and  was  appointed  one  of  the  visit- 
ing inspectors  of  West  Point. 

Lee's  great  training  for  his  later  career,  however, 
came  through  the  war  with  Mexico.    It  is  aside  from 


ROBERT  E.  LEE 


245 


our  purpose  to  go  into  the  causes  of  that  war ;  but  you 
will  recall  it  broke  out  in  1846,  when  Lee  was  thirty 
nine.  The  list  of  officers  of  the  United  States  army 
in  the  war  with  Mexico  reads  like  a  roster  of  the 
generals  on  both  sides  in  the  Civil  War.  There  were 
McClellan,  Hancock,  Thomas  and  Grant.  There  were 
Jefferson  Davis,  Stonewall  Jackson,  Beauregard, 
Longstreet,  Joseph  Johnston,  Jubal  Early  and  Lee. 

Lee  did  admirable  service  in  the  war  with  Mexico. 
He  was  honorably  mentioned  for  his  work  at  the 
taking  of  Vera  Cruz.  He  was  then  attached  to  Gen- 
eral Scott's  personal  staff,  and  given  much  of  the 
difficult  work  of  advance.  For  instance,  at  Cerro 
Gordo,  General  Santa  Anna  was  posted  in  an  ap- 
parently impregnable  pass  in  the  mountains.  Lee 
discovered  a  by-path  around  the  summit;  led  a  por- 
tion of  the  army  over  it  to  a  position  in  front ;  posted 
batteries  by  night;  and  in  the  morning,  executed  a 
turning  movement  that  drove  Santa  Anna  out. 

In  his  report  on  Cerro  Gordo,  General  Scott  said: 

"I  am  compelled  to  make  special  mention  of  the  serv- 
ices of  Captain  R.  E.  Lee,  Engineer.  This  officer, 
greatly  distinguished  at  the  siege  of  Vera  Cruz,  was 
again  indefatigable,  during  these  operations,  in  recon- 
naissances as  daring  as  laborious,  and  of  the  utmost 
value.  Nor  was  he  less  conspicuous  in  planting  bat- 
teries, and  in  conducting  columns  to  their  stations  un- 
der the  heavy  fire  of  the  enemy."* 

Still  more  important  was  Lee's  work  at  Contreras, 


The  war  with 
Mexico. 


Officers  in  the  war 
with  Mexico  who 
became  generals  in 
the  Civil  War. 


Lee's  brilliant 
service  and 
training  for  his 
later  career,  in  the 
war  with  Mexico. 


General  Scott's 
report  on  Lee's 
service  at  Cerro 
Gordo, 


*  Scott,  Gen.  Winfield,  in  Supplemental  Report  on  Cerro  Gordo,  Apr. 
23rd,  1847:     Memoirs,  Vol.  II,  p.  450. 


246 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Lee's  remarkable 
feat  at  Contreras 


General  Scott's 
repeated  praise 
of  Lee. 


Lee  at  the 
conclusion  of  the 
war  with  Mexico 


on  the  road  to  the  City  of  Mexico.  Here,  the  road 
lay  between  impassable  swamps,  rivers  and  lakes,  on 
one  side,  and  on  the  other,  a  tangled  mass  of  twisted 
lava  rock,  called  the  Pedrigal.  Lee  discovered  a  mule 
track  through  the  Pedrigal;  widened  it  with  his  en- 
gineers; led  two  divisions  over  it  to  the  front.  Then 
it  was  discovered  that  they  were  out  of  touch  with 
headquarters,  and  General  Scott  must  be  notified.  So 
alone,  at  night,  in  a  drenching  storm,  Lee  made  his 
way  back  across  that  desolate  twisted  mass  of  lava 
rock;  reported  to  General  Scott;  and  again  returned 
alone,  arriving  in  time  for  the  assault,  the  following 
morning. 

Referring  to  this  feat,  General  Scott  said: 

"Of  the  seven  officers  *  *  *  not  one  has  succeeded 
in  getting  through  these  difficulties,  increased  by  dark- 
ness. They  have  all  returned.  But  the  gallant  and  in- 
defatigable Captain  Lee,  of  the  Engineers,  who  has  been 
constantly  with  the  operating  forces,  is  (eleven  o'clock 
p.  m.)  just  in  *  *  *  to  ask  that  a  powerful  diversion 
be  made  against  the  center  of  the  entrenched  camp 
toward  morning."* 

In  his  summary  of  the  campaign,  General  Scott 
mentioned  "Captain  R.  E.  Lee,  as  distinguished  for 
felicitous  execution  as  for  science  and  daring."  t 
Those  are  authentic  words.  General  Scott  is  further 
reported  to  have  said  that  Lee  was  the  greatest  mili- 
tary genius  in  America.  Whether  he  said  it  or  not, 
it  was  true.     Thus  Lee  issued  from  the  war  with 


\*  Scott,  Gen.  Winfield,  Memoirs,  Vol.  II,  p.  475. 
flbid.,  pp.  500,  501. 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  247 

Mexico,  brevetted  Colonel,  with  the  warm  approba- 
tion of  all  his  superiors,  and  without  the  jealousy  of 
his  associates :  a  signal  illustration  of  his  modesty  and 
generosity,  as  well  as  nobility  of  spirit. 

Lee  was  now  made  Superintendent  of  West  Point; 
and  served  in  that  capacity  from  the  age  of  forty  five   Four  years  as 
to  forty  nine.    His  discipline  was  strict,  but  his  atti-   0fUPWestepoint. 
tude  fatherly;  and  the  students  all  loved  him  de- 
votedly.   His  own  son,  Custis,  was  a  cadet  at  West 
Point,  during  these  years. 

Then  in  1856,  Jefferson  Davis,  United  States 
Secretary  of  War,  commissioned  Lee  Lieutenant 
Colonel  of  a  regiment  of  cavalry,  and  ordered  him  Service  in  Texas. 
to  Texas,  to  protect  the  Texans  against  the  Indians. 
Lee  regretted  leaving  his  beloved  engineers  corps, 
and  disliked  the  assignment  because  of  the  necessary 
long  periods  of  absence  from  home;  but,  of  course, 
obeyed  orders.  He  went  to  Texas  for  several  years 
of  desultory  Indian  fighting,  still  further  equipping 
him  for  his  later  career. 

In  1859,  he  was  called  home  to  Arlington  by  the 
death  of  his  father-in-law,  G.  W.  Parke  Custis.  He  in  1859. 
adjusted  his  father-in-law's  estate.  In  the  will,  it 
was  provided  that  all  the  slaves  should  be  freed  at  a 
certain  date.  Lee  had  long  since  let  go  the  few  slaves 
he  had  inherited ;  and  he  freed  these  others  on  the  as- 
signed date,  which,  strange  to  say,  fell  one  week 
after  Lincoln  issued  the  Emancipation  Proclama- 
tion. 

While  Lee  was  at  home  on  furlough,  the  John 


The  John  Brown 


248  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

Brown  raid  occurred;  and  the  Secretary  of  War  tele- 
graphed Lee  to  take  a  detachment  of  marines,  proceed 
to  Harper's  Ferry  and  arrest  the  raiders.  Singular, 
raid,  and  Lee's  part  that  this  service  should  have  fallen  to  Lee's  lot,  owing 
to  the  accident  of  his  being  on  furlough  at  Arlington. 
Lee  took  his  marines;  went  to  Harper's  Ferry; 
stormed  the  engine  house,  in  which  John  Brown  and 
his  associates  were  barricaded;  arrested  the  raiders, 
and  turned  them  over  to  the  civil  authorities.  It  was 
all  done  quietly  and  effectively,  as  Lee  fulfilled  every 
task  assigned  him. 

Lee  returned  to  Texas,  for  another  period  of 
wLht^ta  the Indian  fighting;  and  then,  in  the  spring  of  1861,  he 
spring  of  1861;      was  suddenlv  ordered  to  Washington.    He  arrived  to 

arriving  to  nnd  "  ^ 

the  Southern         find  seven  states  already  seceded;  their  representa- 

aireadyraCy  tives  having  met  in  Montgomery,  Alabama,  and  in 

established.  early  February,  weeks  before  Lincoln  took  office  as 

President,  formed  the   Southern  Confederacy,  with 

Jefferson  Davis,  ex-United  States  Secretary  of  War, 

as  President,  and  Alexander  H.   Stephens  as  Vice 

President.    Lee  thus  returned  to  Washington  to  find 

the    Southern    Confederacy    an    accomplished    fact, 

J>\Na  _  already  formed  and  functioning. 

The  CiviiN^ar  as        ^^e  Civil  War  was  simply  the  culmination  of  that 

tfetnelmrMnail      cleayage  of  political  philosophy,  which  began  in  the 

conflict  of  opinion  Constitution  itself,  and  took  shape  immediately  after 

Constitution  and    in   the   divisions   of   opinion   led   by   Jefferson   and 

Hamilton.1    The  makers  of  our  Constitution,  after 

the  months  of  wrangling,  established  a  dual  system 

of  government.     We  are  unique  among  the  nations 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  249 

in  living  under  that  dual  system  of  government.  Cer- 
tain rights  and  powers  were  reserved,  in  the  Con- 
stitution, to  the  State  Governments.  Others  were 
specifically  assigned  to  the  new  Federal  Govern-  0ur  dual  system 
ment;  but,  of  course,  the  delegates  could  not  cover  of  g°,vernment- 
the  ground.  New  problems  have  arisen  in  every 
decade  of  our  history.  Immediately  the  question 
arose  as  to  which  government  was  entitled  to  exercise 
the  powers  unassigned  in  the  Constitution.  Here 
came  the  cleavage;  and  it  is  so  important  for  our 
whole  history,  that  it  must  be  repeated. 

Jefferson  held  that  the  State  governments  were 
the  original  sovereign  governments."    Their  repre-  The  political 
sentatives  had  met  and  formed  the  Federal  Govern-  jeffers°6n  and  his 
ment  to  execute  certain  limited  functions.     There-  followers' 
fore,  the  Federal  Government  could  not  lawfully  ex- 
ercise any  power,  not  specifically  granted  to  it  in  the 
Constitution;   and   each   State   could   rightly  annul 
(nullify)   any  act  of  the  Federal  Government,  not 
specifically  warranted  in  the  Constitution;  with  each 
State,  since  absolutely  sovereign,  its  own  final  judge, 
as  to  when  its  rights  had  been  violated;  thus  denying 
the  authority  of  the  Supreme  Court  finally  to  inter- 
pret the  Constitution. 

Hamilton  held  just  the  opposite.     His  view  was, 
you  remember,  that  the  Federal  Government,  once  The  view  of 
formed,  was  the  government  of  all  the  people  in  the  Shirty.  "* 
nation.    As  such,  it  was  superior  to  the  government 
of  any  fraction  or  section  of  the  population.    Thus  all 
powers  not  specifically  reserved  to  the  subordinate 


250 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  original 
conflict  of  opinion. 


Attitude  of  the 
founders  of  our 
government 
toward  the 
question  in 
dispute. 


Article  X  of  the 
Constitution. 


The  Civil  War 
a  conflict  of 
loyalties. 


r 


State  governments,  in  the  Constitution,  belonged  to 
the  government  of  the  whole  nation,  and  might  right- 
fully be  assumed  by  the  Federal  Government,  with  . 
the  Supreme  Court  as  the  final  judge  and  interpreter 
of  the  Constitution. 

There,  in  the  simplest  possible  statement  of  it,  is 
the  original  conflict  of  opinion,  held  with  equal  sin- 
cerity on  both  sides,  which  divided  our  country  for 
more  than  a  half-century,  and  was  settled,  or  sup- 
pressed, only  by  the  terrible  arbitrament  of  fratricidal 
war. 

It  seems  almost  as  if  the  founders  of  our  govern- 
ment meant  to  leave  the  question  of  this  conflict  open, 
for  later  solution;  for  Article  X  of  the  Constitution  A 
(one  of  the  first  series  of  Amendments,  declared-4n- 
force  December  15th,  1791)  reads: 

"The  powers  not  delegated  to  the  United  States  by 
the  Constitution,  nor  prohibited  by  it  to  the  States,  are 
reserved  to  the  States  respectively,  or  to  the  people." 

If  the  unassigned  powers  were  reserved  to  the 
States,  then  Jefferson's  view  was  right;  if  they  were 
reserved  to  the  people,  Hamilton's  interpretation  was 
justified. 

The  Civil  War  was  thus  a  conflict  of  loyalties ;  and 
we  Americans  may  well  be  proud  of  the  fact  that  all 
our  great  wars  have  been  wars  of  ideas  and  not  pri- 
marily of  interests.  The  War  for  Independence,  the 
Civil  War  and  the  World  War  were  all  dominantly 
wars  of  ideas. 

The  original  conflict  of  opinion,  regarding  State 


ROBERT  E.  LEE 


251 


and  Nation,  was  in  no  degree  sectional :  it  ran  through 
all  the  States,  dividing  the  citizenship  everywhere. 
The  first  vigorous  opposition  to  the  Federal  govern- 
ment, moreover,  and  affirmation  of  the  rights  of  the 
States  over  against  it,  came,  not  from  the  South:  ifi 
came  from  New  England;  and  the  statement  is  made 
by  one  of  Plymouth  Rock  ancestry  on  both  sides. 

In  the  war  of  1812,  for  instance,  certain  New  Eng- 
land States  were  incensed  at  measures  taken  by  the 
National  government;  and  Daniel  Webster,  then 
Representative  in  Congress,  made  a  speech,  in 
December,  1814,  on  the  Conscription  bill  in  which  he 
said: 

"No  law  professedly  passed  for  the  purpose  of  com- 
pelling a  service  in  the  regular  army,  nor  any  law  which, 
under  color  of  military  draft,  shall  compel  men  to 
serve  in  the  army,  not  for  the  emergencies  mentioned 
in  the  Constitution,  but  for  long  periods,  and  for  the 
general  objects  of  war,  can  be  carried  into  effect.  In  '' 
my  opinion  it  ought  not  to  be  carried  into  effect.  The 
operation  of  measures  thus  unconstitutional  and  illegal 
ought  to  be  prevented  by  a  resort  to  other  measures 
which  are  both  constitutional  and  legal.  It  will  be  the 
solemn  duty  of  the  State  governments  to  protect  their 
own  authority  over  their  own  militia,  and  to  interpose 
between  their  citizens  and  arbitrary  power.  These  are 
among  the  objects  for  which  the  State  governments  ex- 
ist ;  and  their  highest  obligations  bind  them  to  the  pres- 
ervation of  their  own  rights,  and  the  liberties  of  their 
people.  I  express  these  sentiments  here,  Sir,  because 
I  shall  express  them  to  my  constituents."* 

*  Daniel  Webster,   from   Speech   on  the   Conscription   Bill,   House  of 
Representatives,  December  9,  1814:     Writings,  Supplem.  Vol.  II,  p.  68. 


The   original 
cleavage  as  not 
sectional. 


New  England  as 
first  challenging 
the  Federal 
government  and 
affirming  State 
rights, 


Daniel  Webster's 
speech  in  the  House 
of  Representatives, 
Dec.  9th,  1814. 


Had  Webster's 
opinion  prevailed, 
men  could  not 
have  been  drafted 
in  the  World  War 
and  sent  across 
the  ocean  to  fight 
in  France, 


The  "arbitrary- 
power"  of  the 
Federal 
government. 


252 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Significance  of 
the  Hartford 
Convention  and 
its  resolutions. 


H 


v9 


The  doctrine  of 
State  sovereignty 
in  William 
Rawle's   View  of 
the  Constitution. 


We  think  of  Daniel  Webster  as  the  great  defender 
of  the  Union  and  its  government:  he  became  that  in 
Ihe  later  conflict;  but  this  is  what  he  said  in  1814. 
He  may  have  regretted  it,  afterwards,  but  he  said  it. 

Massachusetts  and  Connecticut  had  acted,  more- 
over, on  the  view  Webster's  speech  expresses,  refus- 
ing to  turn  over  their  militia  to  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment in  the  war  of  1812.  The  Government,  in  conse- 
quence refused  to  pay  the  war  expenses  of  those 
States.  As  a  result,  the  same  month  of  Webster's 
speech,  representatives  of  Massachusetts,  Connecti- 
cut, New  Hampshire,  Vermont  and  Rhode  Island 
met  at  Hartford,  Connecticut,  and  passed  resolutions 
bitterly  attacking  actions  of  the  Federal  Government 
— resolutions  regarded  in  many  quarters  as  treason- 
able. The  original  cleavage  of  opinion  was  in  no  sense 
sectional. 

An  eminent  northern  lawyer,  William  Rawle, 
Chancellor  of  the  Philadelphia  Law  Association,  and 
author  of  a  Manual  of  Cases,  still  quoted  by  lawyers 
when  they  wish  particularly  to  impress  a  judge  with 
authority,  wrote  a  book  on  the  Constitution,  pub- 
lished in  1825.  We  are  told  it  was  used  at  West 
Point,  during  the  following  fifteen  years,  as  an  offi- 
cial text  book  for  the  education  of  the  cadets,  thus 
through  the  period  in  which  Lee  was  a  student  there. 
In  the  course  of  that  text-book,  William  Rawle  says 
(quoted  from  the  edition  of  1829,  with  identical  word- 
ing) : 

"The  States,  then,  may  wholly  withdraw  from  the 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  253 

Union;  but  while  they   continue  they  must  retain  the 
character  of  representative  republics. 

xj?  5Jt  tJ?  7lff  t|? 

"The  secession  of  a  State  from  the  Union  depends  on 
the  will  of  the  people  of  such  State."*     4 

No  southern  leader  in  the  Civil  War  ever  claimed 
more ;  yet  that  is  the  view  of  a  most  eminent  northern 
legal  mind,  in  the  second  quarter  of  the  nineteenth 
century.  The  original  division  of  opinion  was  in  no 
degree  sectional. 

During  Jackson's  administration,  South  Carolina, 
you  remember,  wanted  to  nullify  and  possibly  secede ;   An^r5^  ^ac.kson 
and  it  was  a  President,  not  from  Massachusetts,  New 
York  or  Pennsylvania:  it  was  Andrew  Jackson  of     r 
Tennessee,  who  said,  "The  Union  must  and  shall  be 
preserved'3 ;    and    it    was    preserved,    indeed,    while 
Andrew  Jackson  was  President.  ^ — "*"*--^, 
gain,  in  1842,  John  Quincy  Adams,  then  Repre^ 


sentative  from  Massachusetts,  presented  on  the  floor   The  Haverhill 

.   .  .         petition. 

of  Congress,  a  petition  from  the  people  of  Haverhill, 
Massachusetts,  asking  a  dissolution  of  the  Union.  The 
original  cleavage  of  political  conviction  was  not  sec- 
tional. _.— - —       ■""  """-— - 

As  time  went  on,  it  did  tend,  however,  to  become 
sectional,  placing  in  opposition  the  North  and  the  Reasons  why  the 
South.     Certain  causes   of  this  have   already  been  f^^^^m 
cited:  the  vast  immigration,  with  the  development  of  sectional. 
manufacturing  industries  in  the  North,  obliterating 


*  William  Rawle,  A   View  of  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States 
of  America,  pp.  297,  302,  Philadelphia,  1829. 


254 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Effect  of  the 
discrepancy   in 
population, 
North  and  South. 


State  lines  and  producing  attachment  to  the  National 
Government ;  while  the  South,  remaining  agricultural, 
little  changed  by  immigration,  perpetuated  the  orig- 
inal tradition  of  devotion  to  the  sovereign  State. 

The  same  causes,  immigration  and  manufactures, 
produced  a  preponderant  increase  in  population,  in 
the  North  and  West  as  compared  with  the  South. 
When  the  Civil  War  broke,  there  were  nearly  four 
^whites  to  one,  in  the  States  remaining  in  the  Union 
compared  to  those  seceding  from  it.  This  discrepancy 
was  partly  alleviated  by  allowing  five  slaves  to  count 
as  three  white  votes,  in  determining  national  repre- 
sentation; but  this  did  not  overcome  the  difference. 
The  North,  with  its  developing  industries,  wanted 
protection  for  them;  and  with  its  larger  population 
could  vote  it,  while  the  South  could  not  help  herself. 
Thus  she  had  to  buy  her  manufactured  articles  from 
the  North  and  from  Europe  at  protection  prices ;  and 
sell  her  agricultural  staples,  cotton,  tobacco  and  corn, 
to  the  North  and  to  Europe  at  free  trade  prices.  That 
was  unfair;  but  with  hardly  more  than  one  vote  to 
four,  the  South  could  not  protect  herself.  This  situa- 
tion tended  further  to  make  the  Southern  people 
draw  away  and  cherish  the  older  State  affiliation. 
The  great  cause,  however,  of  the  sectional  cleavage 

ofheaSSoTalCaUSe  was  ^e  ^ark  k*ot  °f  negro  slavery.     Originally  pre- 

cieavage.  vailing  throughout  the  land,  it  had  died  out  in  the 

North,  chiefly  because  it  was  too  uneconomic  for  the 

conditions    of   northern    production.      It    had    been 

stopped  by  law,  in  the  Northwest,  at  the  beginning 


The  influence  of  a 
protective  tariff 
policy  on  the 
South. 


The  survival  of 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  255 

of  1800,  through  the  bill  fathered,  you  recall,  by 
Thomas  Jefferson.',  It  survived  for  a  longer  period 
in  the  South,  because,  though  an  utterly  uneconomic   slavery  as 
institution,  it  was  better  adapted  to  the  conditions  of  the1  Nation. 
southern  agricultural  production,  particularly  in  the 
Cotton   States.     The  result  was   a  wide   difference 
in  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  people,  North  and 
South,  leading  to  a  jealous  cherishing  of  the  State    ■ 
rights  on  the  part  of  the  South. 

The  North,  moreover,  no  longer  afflicted  with  the 
incubus  of  slavery,  took  increasingly  a  moral  view  of  aboUt*on°8entiment 
it.  You  know  it  is  easy  to  take  high  moral  ground  in  the  North- 
with  reference  to  a  problem  a  long  way  off :  if  you  do 
not  know  it,  you  should ;  for  it  is  a  factor  influencing 
our  views,  today  as  yesterday.  The  South  compelled 
to  live  with  slavery,  knowing  the  problem  at  first 
hand,  took  naturally  the  political  and  economic  view 
of  it. 

The  people  of  the  North,  moreover,  seeing  the 
slaves  from  a  long  distance,  often  viewed  them  Abolitionist  views 
through  rose-colored  glasses.  So  intelligent  a  man  as 
Wendell  Phillips  went  about  publicly  proclaiming 
that  in  one  generation  after  emancipation,  the  slaves 
would  be  intellectually  and  morally  superior  to  their 
masters.  In  his  lecture  on  Toussaint  UOuvertwre, 
given  in  New  York  and  Boston,  in  December,  1861,  Wendell  phiiiips 
Wendell  Phillips  said:  in  1861- 

"In  the  hour  you  lend  me  tonight,  I  attempt  the 
Quixotic  effort  to  convince  you  that  the  negro  blood, 
instead  of  standing  at  the  bottom  of  the  list,  is  entitled, 


256  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

if  judged  either  by  its  great  men  or  its  masses,  either 
by  its  courage,  its  purpose,  or  its  endurance,  to  a  place 
as  near  ours  as  any  other  blood  known  in  history."*      v 

To  us  who  come  after  the  event,  North  and  South, 
such  views  seem  strange;  but  they  were  widely  held 
among  the  northern  Abolitionists.  The  Southern 
£>1th?'siuthVieW  Pe°ple>  living  with  the  slaves,  knew  well  what  a  long 
road  the  negro  has  still  to  travel,  before  even  approxi- 
mately catching  up  with  the  advanced  races  in  civili- 
zation. 

Under  this  situation,  think  what  the  disproportion 
Significance  for  m  population,  already  cited,  meant  to  the  South.  Sup- 
the  South  of  the     p0Se  the  rapidly  growing  abolition  sentiment  should 

disproportion  of        *  r        J    °     .  ° 

voting  population,  get  the  upper  hand  in  Northern  politics,  what  would 
happen?  The  South  remembered  the  Nat  Turner 
rebellion.  That  had  been  followed  by  the  Charles- 
ton, South  Carolina,  conspiracy.  In  October,  1859, 
came  the  John  Brown  raid  at  Harper's  Ferry:  a 
frank  attempt  to  lead  the  negro  slaves  to  rise  in  re- 
Brown  raid  meant  bellion  against  their  masters,  exultantly  applauded  by 
to  the  South.  the  Abolitionists.  Wendell  Phillips,  their  outstand- 
ing spokesman,  said  in  a  speech  in  Plymouth  Church, 
Brooklyn,  two  weeks  after  the  raid  and  three  days 
after  John  Brown's  conviction: 


"Virginia,  the   Commonwealth  of  Virginia!     She  is 

only  a  chronic  insurrection.     I  mean  exactly  what  I 

view  of  the  raid.  say.     I  am  weighing  my  words  now.     She  is  a  pirate 

ship,  and  John  Brown  sails  the  sea  a  Lord  High  Ad- 


The   Abolitionist 


*  Phillips,  Wendell,  in  lecture  on   Toussaint  UOuverture :  Speeches, 
Lectures  and  Letters,  Series  I,  p.  469. 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  257 

miral  of  the  Almighty,  with  his  commission  to  sink  every 
pirate  he  meets  on  God's  ocean  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury."* |  V 

Imagine  what  the  public  expression  of  such  senti- 
ments did  to  the  South!     Suppose  the  John  Brown  The  Southern  fear 

•  n  °f   a   negro 

raid  had  achieved  its  purpose :  of  course,  there  was  not  uprising. 
a  chance  in  a  million :  the  slaves  were  too  loyal  to  their 
masters ;  but  suppose  it  had  succeeded.    What  would 
have  happened  to  the  South:  to  the  children  of  the 
South,  to  the  women  of  the  South,  to  the  beautiful 
culture  of  the  South,  elaborated  through  a  hundred 
and  fifty  years?    That  was  the  terror  in  the  heart  of 
every  thoughtful  Southerner;  and  the  demand  for  the 
extension  of  slave  territory,  on  the  part  of  the  people 
of  the   South,   did  not   mean  that   they  were   per- 
manently committed   to   the   institution   of   slavery. 
Suppose  all  the  new  territories  came  in  as  free  States : 
the  vote  was  already  nearly  four  to  one:  suppose  it 
became  six  to  one,  eight  to  one?     Then  let  the  in- 
tense and  growing  abolition  sentiment  of  the  North  significance  of  the 
get  the  upper  hand  in  Northern  politics;  with  the  re-  ^Xsion^f  dive 
suit  suddenly  of  eliminating  slavery,  either  by  legis-  territory  by  the 
lation  or  a  Constitutional  amendment?    Think  what  South. 
disaster  this  would  mean  to  the  South.     Thus,  the 
demand  for  the  extension  of  slave  territory,  on  the 
part  of  the  people  of  the  South,  mas  a  struggle  for 
self-preservation,  not  to  be  completely  out-weighed 


*  Phillips,  Wendell,  in  speech  on  The  Lesson  of  the  Hour,  delivered 
in  Plymouth  Church,  Brooklyn,  New  York,  Nov.  1st,  1859:  Speeches, 
Lectures  and  Letters,  Series  I,  p.  272. 


258  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

and  out-voted  in  the  national  councils.  Every  person, 
born  and  reared  north  of  Mason  and  Dixon's  line, 
should  realize  that,  to  understand  the  conflict  of  loyal- 
ties in  the  Civil  War. 

One  compromise  after  another  was  attempted,  the 
Missouri  Compromise  being  the  most  lasting  and  im- 
portant; but  none  worked,  except  for  a  time.     Hate 
and  bitterness  grew  rapidly  on  both  sides,  obscuring 
the  vision  and  clouding  the  judgment  of  men.     The 
South  took  the  election  of  Lincoln  as  a  direct  chal- 
immediate  results  lenge.    Four  days  after  his  election,  the  South  Caro- 
Lin«Snelectlon  °f    ^ma  Senators  resigned  and  went  home ;  and  six  weeks 
after  the  election,  months  before  Lincoln  took  office  as 
President,  South  Carolina  seceded  from  the  Union. 
Her   example   was   followed   by   the   five   "Cotton" 
The  situation  Lee  States,  and  shortly  afterwards  by  Texas.     In  early 
faced  on  arriving    February  the  representatives  of  these  States  estab- 

at  Washington.  . 

lished  the  Confederacy,  still  weeks  in  advance,  as  has 
been  shown,  of  Lincoln's  inauguration.  <  This  was  the 
situation  Lee  came  home  to  face: 

His  feeling  on  returning  is  expressed  in  a  letter  to 
his  son,  Custis,  written  in  December,  1860: 

"Feeling  the  aggressions  of  the  North,  resenting  their 
denial  of  the  equal  rights  of  our  citizens  to  the  common 
territory  of  the  commonwealth,  etc.,  I  am  not  pleased 
with  the  course  of  the  'Cotton  States',  as  they  term 
themselves.  In  addition  to  their  selfish,  dictatorial 
bearing,  the  threats  they  throw  out  against  the  'Border 
States',  as  they  call  them,  if  they  will  not  join  them, 
argues  little  for  the  benefit  or  peace  of  Virginia  should 
she  determine  to  coalesce  with  them.     While  I  wish  to 


ROBERT  E.  LEE 


259 


do  what  is  right,  I  am  unwilling  to  do  what  is  wrong, 
either  at  the  bidding  of  the  South  or  the  North.  One 
of  their  plans  seems  to  be  the  renewal  of  the  slave  trade. 
That  I  am  opposed  to  on  every  ground."* 

Lee  was  as  earnestly  opposed  to  the  institution  of 
slavery  as  was  Washington.     The  following  passage  Lee's  view  of 
gives  his  view:  taken  from  a  letter  written  home  from  ofVavery!  10n 
Texas,  intended,  not  for  the  public,  but  for  his  wife : 

"In  this  enlightened  age  there  are  few,  I  believe,  but 
will  acknowledge  that  slavery  as  an  institution  is  a 
moral  and  political  evil  in  any  country.  It  is  useless 
to  expatiate  on  its  disadvantages.  I  think  it,  however, 
a  greater  evil  to  the  white  than  to  the  black  race,  and 
while  my  feelings  are  strongly  interested  in  behalf  of  the 
latter,  my  sympathies  are  stronger  for  the  former.  The 
blacks  are  immeasurably  better  off  here  than  in  Africa, 
morally,  socially  and  physically.  *  *  *  Their  eman- 
cipation will  sooner  result  from  a  mild  and  melting  in- 
fluence than  the  storms  and  contests  of  fiery  con- 
troversy.   *    *    * 

"Is  it  not  strange  that  the  descendants  of  those  Pil- 
grim Fathers  who  crossed  the  Atlantic  to  preserve  the 
freed  mi  of  their  opinion  have  always  proved  themselves 
intolerant  of  the  spiritual  liberty  of  others. "f 

During  the  Civil  War,  Lee  proposed  that  the  Con- 
federacy should  free  all  the  slaves  in  its  domain,  and 
give  a  bond  to  each  slave  owner  for  the  value  of 
his  slaves;  such  bond  to  be  a  first  claim  on  the  Con- 


A  comment 
instructive  to 
some  of  us, 
because   it  was 
not  written  for  us ! 


*  Lee,  in  letter  to  his  son,  Custis,  of  Dec.  14th,  1860,  from  San 
Antonio,  Texas:    Jones,  Life  and  Letters  of  Lee,  p.   119. 

fLee,  in  letter  to  Mrs.  Lee,  Fort  Brown,  Texas,  Dec.  27th,  1856: 
Jones,  Life  and  Letters  of  Lee,  pp.  82,  83. 


260 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Lee's  view  of  the 
Nation  and 
devotion  to  the 
Union. 


Revolution  as  the 
last  right  of 
liberty. 


Deep-seated 
conviction  against 
coercion  by  the 
Nation  toward 
the  State. 


federacy  after  independence  had  been  achieved.   That 
gives  sufficiently  Lee's  views  of  slavery. 

Lee  was,  moreover,  devoted  to  the  Union,  regard- 
ing its  possible  disruption  as  the  greatest  of  catastro- 
phes.    In  another  letter  home  from  Texas,  he  wrote: 

"I  can  anticipate  no  greater  calamity  for  the  coun- 
try than  a  dissolution  of  the  Union.  It  would  be  an 
accumulation  of  all  the  evils  we  complain  of,  and  I  am 
willing  to  sacrifice  everything  but  honor  for  its  preser- 
vation.   *    *    *    Secession  is  nothing  but  revolution." 

That  is  just  what  it  was.  Of  course,  revolution  is 
the  last  right  of  liberty:  when  everything  else  fails, 
men  may  turn  to  revolution,  if  they  dare  and  are 
willing  to  pay  the  price.  The  only  difference  History 
makes,  between  a  revolution  and  a  rebellion,  is  that 
one  succeeded  and  the  other  failed.  Every  revolution 
in  history  that  failed  goes  down  as  a  rebellion;  every 
rebellion  that  succeeded  goes  down  as  a  revolution: 
History  does  not  go  behind  the  returns. 

Lee  continues: 

"The  framers  of  our  Constitution  never  exhausted  so 
much  labor,  wisdom  and  forbearance  in  its  formation, 
and  surrounded  it  with  so  many  guards  and  securities, 
if  it  was  intended  to  be  broken  by  every  member  of  the 
Confederation  at  will.  *  *  *  Still,  a  Union  that  can 
only  be  maintained  by  swords  and  bayonets,  and  in  which 
strife  and  civil  wrar  are  to  take  the  place  of  brotherly 
love  and  kindness,  has  no  charm  for  me.  I  shall  mourn 
for  my  country  and  for  the  welfare  and  progress  of 
mankind.  If  the  Union  is  dissolved,  and  the  Govern- 
ment disrupted,  I  shall  return  to  my  native  State  and 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  261 

share  the  miseries  of  my  people,  and  save  in  defense  will 

draw  my  sword  on  none."* 

Tiii  n  ,t_        ,i_.   ,  Lee's  thirty-two 

.Lee  had  been,  moreover,  tor  more  than  thirty  years  years  0f  service 
in  honorable  service  in  the  United  States  army:  its  ^a^  ^^yd 
commanders  were  his  approving  superiors,  its  officers, 
his  affectionate  friends  and  comrades. 

When  Lee  reached  Washington,  President  Lincoln, 
through  Blair,  offered  him  the  command-in-chief  of  Lee  offered  and 
the  Union  armies.    Lee  declined,  of  course :  he  could  command  hf  chief 
not  imagine  leading  an  army  of  invasion  into  his  own  of  the  Union 
State,  against  his  own  people.    Had  he  been  able  to 
accept,  the  war  could  scarcely  have  lasted  a  year :  with. 
Lee's  incomparable  military  genius  transferred  from 
the  one  side  to  the  other,  it  would  have  been  quickly  acceptance  of 
over.     He  declined.     He  went  into  General  Scott's  Lincoln's1  offer 
office,  told  of  the  offer  that  had  been  made  him,  and  would  have  meant- 
explained  the  reasons  for  his  declination.     Then  he 
went  home  to  Arlington. 

The  next  night  Lee  spent  walking  to  and  fro  in  an 
up-stairs  room,  while  his  wife  waited  anxiously  in  the  ^u  "^^ith  the 
room  below.  The  sound  of  his  footfalls  ceased  only  problem. 
when  he  knelt  in  prayer.  Toward  morning  he  came 
down,  and  said  quietly  to  the  anxiously  waiting  wife  : 
"Well,  Mary,  the  question  is  settled.  Here  is  my 
resignation,    and   a   letter   I   have   written    General  Lee's  letter  to 

6  _  General  Scott 

oCOtt.         ±he  letter  Said:  accompanying  his 

resignation  from 
"Since  my  interview  with  you  on  the  18th  inst.,  I  have        the  United  States 

felt  that  I  ought  no  longer  to  retain  my  commission  in        army- 


*  Lee,  Letter  home  from  Fort  Mason,  Texas,  January  23,  1861 :    Jones, 
Life  and  Letters  of  Lee,  p.  121. 


262  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

the  army.  I  therefore  tender  my  resignation,  which  I 
request  you  will  recommend  for  acceptance.  It  would 
have  been  presented  at  once  but  for  the  struggle  it  has 
cost  me  to  separate  myself  from  a  service  to  which  I 
have  devoted  all  the  best  years  of  my  life  and  all  the 
ability  I  possessed. 

"During  the  whole  of  that  time — more  than  a  quarter 
of  a  century — I  have  experienced  nothing  but  kindness 
from  my  superiors,  and  the  most  cordial  friendship  from 
my  comrades.  To  no  one,  General,  have  I  been  as  much 
indebted  as  to  yourself  for  uniform  kindness  and  con- 
sideration, and  it  has  always  been  my  ardent  desire  to 
meet  your  approbation.  I  shall  carry  to  the  grave  the 
most  grateful  recollections  of  your  kind  consideration, 
and  your  name  and  fame  will  always  be  dear  to  me. 

"Save  in  defense  of  my  native  State,  I  never  desire 
again  to  draw  my  sword.  Be  pleased  to  accept  my  most 
earnest  wishes  for  the  continuance  of  your  happiness 
and  prosperity,  and  believe  me, 

"Most  truly  yours, 

"R.  E.  Lee."* 

On  the  same  day  with  this  letter  to  General  Scott, 
Stereonrthe  day  Lee  wrote  nis  sister,  Mrs.  Marshall,  at  Baltimore: 
"My  dear  Sister:  I  am  grieved  at  my  inability  to  see 
you.  I  have  been  waiting  for  a  more  convenient  season, 
which  has  brought  to  many  before  me  deep  and  lasting 
regret.  Now  we  are  in  a  state  of  war  which  will  yield 
to  nothing.  The  whole  South  is  in  a  state  of  revolution 
into  which  Virginia,  after  a  long  struggle,  has  been 
drawn;  and,  though  I  recognize  no  necessity  for  this 
state  of  things,  and  would  have  forborne  and  pleaded 
to  the  end  for  redress  of  grievances,  real  or  supposed, 


*Lee,    letter    to    General    Scott,    Arlington,    Va.,    April    20th,    1861 
Jones,  Life  and  Letters  of  Lee,  pp.  132,  133. 


ROBERT  E.  LEE 


263 


yet  in  my  own  person  I  had  to  meet  the  question  whether 
I  should  take  part  against  my  native  State.  With  all 
my  devotion  to  the  Union,  and  the  feeling  of  loyalty 
and  duty  of  an  American  citizen,  I  have  not  been  able 
to  make  up  my  mind  to  raise  my  hand  against  my  rela- 
tives, my  children,  my  home.  I  have  therefore  resigned 
my  commission  in  the  army,  and  save  in  defense  of  my 
native  State,  with  the  sincere  hope  that  my  poor  services 
may  never  be  needed,  I  hope  I  may  never  be  called  on 
to  draw  my  sword. 

"I  know  you  will  blame  me,  but  you  must  think  as 
kindly  of  me  as  you  can,  and  believe  that  I  have  en- 
deavored to  do  what  I  thought  right."* 

Also  on  the  same  date,  Lee  wrote  to  his  brother : 

"After  the  most  anxious  inquiry  as  to  the  correct 
course  for  me  to  pursue,  I  concluded  to  resign,  and  sent 
in  my  resignation  this  morning.  I  wished  to  wait  until 
the  Ordinance  of  Secession  should  be  acted  on  by  the 
people  of  Virginia;  but  war  seems  to  have  commenced, 
and  I  am  liable  at  any  time  to  be  ordered  on  duty  which 
I  could  not  conscientiously  perform.  To  save  me  from 
such  a  position,  and  to  prevent  the  necessity  of  resign- 
ing under  orders,  I  had  to  act  at  once,  and  before  I 
could  see  you  again  on  the  subject,  as  I  had  wished. 
I  am  now  a  private  citizen,  and  have  no  other  ambition 
than  to  remain  at  home.  Save  in  defense  of  my  native 
State,  I  have  no  desire  ever  again  to  draw  my  sword. "f 

April  13th,  a  week  before  Lee's  resignation  from 
the  United  States  army,  Sumter  had  fallen.  April 
15th,  Lincoln  called  for  seventy-five  thousand  volun- 


*  Lee,  in  letter  to  his  sister,  April  20th,  1861 :  Long,  Memoirs  of 
Robert  E.  Lee,  p.  95. 

t  Lee,  in  a  letter  to  his  brother,  Arlington,  Va.,  April  20th,  1861: 
Captain  Lee's  Recollections  and  Letters,  pp.  26,  27. 


The  explanation 
in  a  letter  to 
his  brother. 


Significance  of  the 
one  reiterated 
reservation. 


264 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Circumstances  of 
the  great  decision. 


Accepting 
command  of  the 
Virginia  forces 
for  defense. 


Reasons  why  the 
crucial   decision 
was  inevitable  to 
Lee's  conscience. 


teers.  April  17th,  Virginia,  whose  Legislature  had 
voted  not  to  secede,  and  then,  by  a  larger  majority, 
had  voted  that  the  Union  had  no  right  to  use  force  to 
coerce  a  State  to  remain  in  it,  purely  on  the  State 
versus  Nation  issue,  seceded;  followed  by  North 
Carolina,  Tennessee  and  Arkansas.  April  23rd,  three 
days  after  his  resignation,  Lee  was  summoned  to 
Richmond,  and  offered  the  command  of  the  Virginia 
forces  for  defense:  he  accepted;  and  the  great,  the 
crucial  decision  was  made. 

The  reasons  for  it?  If  you  have  followed  the  pre- 
ceding argument,  those  reasons  are  evident:  Lee's 
inheritance,  his  early  environment,  the  great  tradition 
of  Virginia;  his  education,  the  interpretation  of  the 
Constitution  he  had  studied  under  government  sanc- 
tion at  West  Point;  his  deep-seated  conviction  that 
the  Union  had  no  right  to  use  force  to  compel  a 
sovereign  State  to  remain  in  it;  his  utter  devotion  to 
duty,  as  the  guiding  principle  of  his  life,  without  re- 
gard to  his  interests  or  career;  the  impossibility  of 
going  against  his  own  people:  if  they  went,  he  must 
go  with  them,  share  their  miseries  and  help  to  bear 
their  burdens.  The  decision  was  the  only  one  Robert 
E.  Lee  could  make,  being  who  he  was;  and  it  was 
the  decision  you  or  I  would  have  made,  with  Lee's 
inheritance,  environment,  education  and  his  utter  de- 
votion to  duty  as  the  guiding  principle  of  life. 

The  decision  once  made,  there  was  no  return  to 
questioning:  Lee  was  the  military  leader  to  the  end 
of  the  war.  He  had  no  illusions  regarding  the  conflict 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  265 

however.     North  and  South,  with  the  arrogance  of 

hate,  men  were  boasting  of  easy  victory.    All  over  the 

North,  they  were  saying  the  war  would  be  a  picnic: 

well,  war  is  never  that!     Everywhere   South,  they 

were  boasting  that  one  Southerner  could  whip  four 

Yankees  any  day;  which  is  just  about  what  they 

would  have  had  to  achieve  to  win  the  war.     Not  so 

Lee:  he  wrote  his  wife,  "Make  your  preparations  for 

several  years  of  war."     Moreover,  he  did  not  wish  Lee,s  hi  h 

his  decision  to  influence  others,  even  his  own  son.    He  magnanimity. 

wrote  to  his  wife  regarding  his  son,  Custis,  who  had 

been  a  cadet  at  West  Point,  while  his  father  was 

Superintendent,  and  who  was  now  an  officer  in  the 

United  States  army: 

"Tell  Custis  he  must  consult  his  own  judgment,  rea- 
son, and  conscience  as  to  the  course  he  may  take.     I  do 
not  wish  him  to  be  guided  by  my  wishes  or  example.     If        T  , ,        f  T 
I  have  done  wrong,  let  him  do  better.     The  present  is        regarding  his 
a  momentous  question  which  every  man  must  settle  for        son's  decl81on- 
himself  and  upon  principle."* 

Could  loving  father  say  more?  Of  course,  Custis 
went  with  his  father,  as  did  Lee's  other  sons.  Let  it 
be  said,  further,  for  Robert  E.  Lee,  that  no  word  of  Nature's 

_  _,     _  nobleman. 

hate  or  abuse  of  the  North,  or  of  the  people  of  the 
North,  ever  came  from  his  lips,  to  the  end  of  his  life. 
Nature's  nobleman,  indeed,  he  was! 

When  the  war  began,  there  were  twenty-two  mil- 
lion  people   living  in  the   States  remaining  in  the 


*Lee,  in  letter  to  his  wife,  May  13,  1861:    Jones,  Life  and  Letters 
of  Lee,  p.  140. 


266 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Contrasting 
situation  and 
equipment  of  the 
Union  and  the 
Confederacy  in 
the  great  conflict. 


The  two  chances 
the  South  had  in 
the  struggle. 


The  first  hope: 

foreign 

intervention. 


Union.  There  were  five  and  a  half  million  whites 
and  three  and  a  half  million  blacks  in  the  seceding 
States :  nearly  four  white  citizens  to  one,  in  the  North 
as  compared  with  the  South.  The  Union  had  a 
government,  long  established  and  efficiently  function- 
ing, with  an  army  and  plans  for  immediate  war 
mobilization.  The  South  had  the  newly  formed  Con- 
federate Government,  with  everything  to  be  done 
from  the  ground  up.  The  Union  had  a  navy:  the 
Confederacy  had  none.  The  North  was  rich  in  manu- 
factures ;  the  South  had  practically  none.  During  the 
war,  the  Union  enlisted  two  and  one-half  million 
men.  The  Confederacy,  calling  every  stripling  and 
graybeard,  who  could  move  about  and  carry  a  gun, 
enlisted  nine  hundred  thousand.  The  mountain  popu- 
lation of  the  South,  moreover,  gave  the  Union  armies 
a  hundred  and  eighty  thousand  men.  When  the  war 
closed,  there  were  nine  hundred  and  eighty  thousand 
Union  soldiers  in  the  field,  and  about  a  hundred  and 
seventy-five  thousand  Confederates. 

It  looked  hopeless  for  the  South  from  the  start,  did 
it  not?  There  were  two  chances.  First,  foreign  in- 
tervention: that  was  the  hope  of  President  Davis  and 
of  many  others,  to  the  end  of  the  war ;  and  not  without 
reason.  It  had  happened  in  the  Revolution,  when 
France  entered  at  the  critical  moment  and  turned  the 
scale ;  why  might  it  not  happen  again?  Britain  looked 
across  the  ocean  at  the  great  lion  cub,  sprung  from 
her  loins,  that  had  grown  so  swiftly  powerful.  Many 
of  her  statesmen  would  have  been  glad  to   see  us 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  267 

divided,  and  no  longer  so  strong.  Other  nations  felt 
much  the  same.  If  the  South  could  carry  on  the  war 
successfully  for  a  considerable  period  of  time,  it  was 
not  unreasonable  to  hope  that  some  power  might  in- 
tervene in  her  favor.  Lee  did  not  cheat  himself  with 
that  illusion.  Moreover  he  saw,  as  did  Washington 
in  the  Revolution,  that  if  victory  were  to  be  worth 
while,  the  South  must  win  it  for  herself. 

There  was  another  chance  for  the  South,  however. 
Barring  the  mountain  population,  the  people  of  the 
South  were  solidly  behind  the  war,  as  is  usually  true 
of  an  invaded  land :  the  people  of  the  North  were  % 
not.    All  over  the  North  was  a  large  body  of  citizens,   opposed  on 

i_   v  si       •  •    ,•  j-j  T,-       i     conviction  to 

believing  with  sincere  conviction  m  the  very  political  the  war. 
philosophy  on  which  the  Southern  States  had  seceded 
from  the  Union.  Deploring  the  rift  in  the  Union, 
these  men  held  that  the  seceding  States  had  the  con- 
stitutional right  to  go,  if  they  chose  to  do  so.  Those 
citizens,  therefore,  regarded  the  war  as  unjust,  and 
were  actively  opposed  to  it. 

Besides  these,  was  another  large  group  negatively 
opposed  to  the  war;  indeed,  the  Abolitionists  were   m 

x  x  ,  ,  The  group 

generally  in  that  camp  during  the  first  year  and  a  half  negatively  opposed 
of  the  war.  They  saw  only  their  own  issue.  They 
were  willing  to  fight  through  a  war  to  free  the  slaves ; 
but  President  Lincoln  told  them  that  was  not  this 
war,  that  it  was  a  war  to  preserve  the  Union;  and 
many  were  unwilling  to  fight  for  that.  Their  spokes- 
man, Wendell  Phillips,  in  those  desperately  dark  days 
of  January,   1861,   gave   a   speech  in   Music   Hall, 


268 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  Abolitionists 
as  pacifists. 


The  second  hope 
for  the  South. 


Lee's  amazing 

military 

achievement. 


Boston,   on  Disunion,   in   which  he   exulted  in  the 
breaking  of  the  Union,  saying: 

"Why  do  I  set  so  little  value  on  the  Union?    Because 
I  consider  it  a  failure."* 

On  February  17th,  speaking  in  the  same  hall  on 
Progress,  he  said : 

"We  do  not  want  the  Border  States.     Let  them  go, 
be  welcome  to  the  Forts,  take  the  Capital  with  them."f 

The  view  of  these  extremists  was :  We  do  not  want 
slaves  in  the  Union;  the  South  wants  slaves:  let  her 
take  her  slaves  and  go,  and  stew  in  her  own  juice. 

With  this  large  party  in  the  North,  actively  or 
negatively  opposed  to  the  war,  if  the  South  could 
make  a  successful  showing  on  the  battle  field,  and 
carry  the  war  well  into  the  North,  was  there  not 
reason  to  hope  that  the  opposition  in  the  North  might 
get  the  upper  hand,  and  the  South  win  peace  with 
independence?  That  was  the  hope  Lee  cherished  till 
near  the  end  of  the  war. 

That,  in  the  face  of  the  seemingly  insuperable  odds, 
Lee  carried  through  three  years  of  brilliant  warfare, 
winning  a  series  of  victories  unequalled  except  in  the 
career  of  Napoleon,  makes  him  one  of  the  great  mili- 
tary captains  of  all  history;  and  it  was  possible,  fur- 
ther, because  of  the  utter  devotion  of  the  South  behind 
him. 


*  Phillips,  Wendell,  in  speech  on  Disunion,  Music  Hall,  Boston,  Jan. 
20th,  1861 :    Speeches,  Lectures  and  Letters,  Series  I,  p.  356. 

f  Phillips,  Wendell,  in  speech  on  Progress,  Feb.  17th,  1861 :  Speeches, 
Lectures  and  Letters,   Series   I,  p.   387. 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  269 

When  Virginia,  a  short  time  after  seceding,  entered 
the  Confederacy,  Lee  was  automatically  reduced  in  Service  during 
rank,  as  he  was  in  command  merely  of  the  Virginia  *f \hewar?ar 
forces  for  defense.  He  went  to  Richmond,  and  spent 
the  first  months  of  the  war  raising  and  equipping  an 
army.  Thus  he  was  not  at  Bull  Run;  but  it  was  his 
work  and  plans  which  made  the  Confederate  victory 
at  Bull  Run  possible. 

Then  he  was  sent  into  West  Virginia.    Owing  to  a 
series  of  accidents,  the  West  Virginia  campaign  was 
a  failure;  but  the  President  of  the  Confederacy  did 
not  lose  faith  in  Lee.    He  was  sent  south  to  improve 
the  coast  defenses ;  and  he  made  Georgia  and  the  Caro- 
lines impregnable  by  sea  till  the  end  of  the  war.     In 
March,  1862,  he  was  recalled  to  Richmond,  and  made  Lee  chief  of  staff 
Chief  of  Staff  under  President  Davis.     To  under-  from  March>  1862- 
stand  that  one  must  remember  that  the  President  of 
the  Confederacy  regarded  himself  as  the  active  head 
of  its  military  forces.    Lincoln  did  not  take  that  atti- 
tude in  the  Union.     Of  course,  as  President,  he  was 
absolute    authority    over   the    armed    forces    of    the 
Nation;  but  always  he  wanted  an  active  commander- 
in-chief,  in  the  field  under  him.     President  Davis, 
however,  who  was  a  graduate  of  West  Point,  had  as  active  military 
risen  to  the  rank  of  Colonel  in  the  army,  and  had  ex-   confederate6 
perienced  active  service  in  the  Black  Hawk  war  and  forces- 
the  war  with  Mexico,  besides  serving  as  United  States 
Secretary  of  War,  regarded  himself  as  actively  in 
command  of  the   Confederate   armed   forces.     Lee, 
therefore,  did  not  have,  as  chief  of  staff,  the  authority 


270 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Consequences  of 
Lee's  limited 
authority. 


Significance  of 
Lee's  relations 
with  President 
Davis. 


McClellan's 
campaign :    "On 
to  Richmond!" 


to  order  the  concentration  of  armies,  as  Grant  for 
instance,  could  do.  It  was  not  until  February,  1865, 
two  months  before  the  war  closed,  when  the  Con- 
federacy, at  its  last  gasp,  was  grasping  at  any  straw, 
that  Lee  was  finally  made  Commander-in-Chief: 
singular  that  it  came  so  late !  Had  that  appointment 
been  made  earlier,  certain  events  of  the  war  would 
have  been  different,  though  the  final  outcome  could 
hardly  have  been  changed. 

Nothing,  moreover,  better  shows  Lee's  magna- 
nimity and  generosity  than  his  whole  relation  to  the 
President  of  the  Confederacy.  President  Davis  was 
whole-souled  in  devotion  to  his  cause.  He  gave  it  the 
best  wisdom  and  service  he  had  in  him;  but  he  was 
strong  in  his  opinions  and  something  of  a  martinet 
in  discipline.  He  quarreled  with  certain  of  his  gen- 
erals; and  some  of  them  were  dismissed  in  conse- 
quence. Lee  was  in  closer  relation  to  him  than  any 
other  Southern  general;  and  there  was  never  a  word 
of  misunderstanding  to  the  end  of  the  war.  This 
was  to  Lee's  credit.  His  attitude  was,  I  am  not  a 
politician,  but  a  military  man,  concerned  solely  with 
carrying  out  orders  in  the  field.  When  his  opinion 
was  asked,  he  gave  it  frankly  and  fully;  but  never 
intruded.  Thus  he  maintained  entirely  friendly  rela- 
tions with  President  Davis  to  the  end. 

In  the  Spring  of  1862,  McClellan,  urged  on  by 
Lincoln,  who  had  yielded  to  the  popular  cry,  "On  to 
Richmond,"  invaded  Virginia  with  a  splendidly 
equipped  and  now  well  trained  army  of  115,000  men. 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  271 

For  the  protection  of  Richmond,  now  the  Capital, 

Lee  had  some  53,000;  and  there  were  perhaps  17,000 

more  elsewhere  in  the  State.    Against  the  advice  of 

his  generals,  Lee  decided  on  a  frontal  attack.     He  Malvern  mil  and 

summoned  Jackson  to  him ;  and  with  his  united  army  tictorliro^Lee. 

of  70,000  men,  at  Malvern  Hill,  rolled  McClellan's 

army  back  upon  itself ;  completely  outgeneralled  Mc- 

Clellan ;  won  victory  after  victory ;  and  at  the  end  of 

the  seven  days'  fighting,  McClellan  barely  succeeded 

in  getting  what  was  left  of  his  shattered  army  across 

the  Potomac  to  temporary  safety. 

The  point  is,  Lee  was  able  to  think  all  around  Mc- 
Clellan: indeed  he  could  go  all  around  him;  for 
Stuart,  the  "Light  Horse  Harry"  of  Lee's  army, 
with  1,200  cavalrymen,  rode  completely  around  the 
Union  armies,  getting  every  position,  and  returning 
unscathed;  which  seriously  shook  the  confidence  of 
Lincoln  and  the  North  in  McClellan's  leadership. 

You  see  Lee  had  served  with  McClellan  in  the  war 
with  Mexico,  and  he  knew  McClellan's  psychology. 
McClellan  was  an  admirable  drill-master.    Few  men  Reasons  for  Lee's 

outgeneraling  of 

have  been  so  able  to  whip  an  army  into  shape  and  McClellan. 
prepare  it  for  battle  as  was  McClellan ;  but  he  lacked 
the  audacity  and  the  imagination  necessary  to  bril- 
liant work  in  the  field ;  and  then  he  was  obsessed  with 
the  idea  that  there  were  about  three  times  as  many 
Southern  troops  as  really  were  in  Lee's  army  opposed 
to  him.  Lee,  knowing  his  mental  processes,  was  able 
to  anticipate  his  every  move  and  so  completely  to 
outgeneral  him. 


272 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Pope  and  the 
second  Bull  Run. 


The  situation 
compelling  Lee's 
compaign  into 
Maryland, 


The  result  was,  Lincoln  issued  an  order  creating  a 
second  army,  for  the  protection  of  Washington,  plac- 
ing Pope  in  command;  and  a  little  later,  called 
Halleck  to  the  chief  command  at  Washington. 

Lee,  with  Napoleonic  audacity,  divided  his  little 
army  of  50,000  men;  placed  half,  under  Jackson, 
behind  Pope,  the  other  half  in  front;  came  through 
Thoroughfare  Gap;  and  Pope's  incompetence  in 
meeting  Lee's  strategy  resulted  in  the  second  Bull 
Run,  of  August,  1862.  From  now  on  Lee  was  the 
hero  of  the  Confederacy,  with  the  burden  of  its  for- 
tunes upon  his  shoulders. 

At  this  point,  Lee  decided  to  carry  the  war  into  the 
North.  He  had  to  do  it,  to  strengthen  the  morale 
of  the  South,  in  the  hope  of  bringing  about  foreign 
intervention,  in  the  expectation  of  Maryland  rising 
and  joining  the  South,  in  the  further  hope  that  the 
party  opposed  to  the  war  in  the  North  might  get  the 
upper  hand  and  grant  the  South  peace  with  inde- 
pendence, and  finally,  he  had  to  do  it  to  subsist  his 
army.  It  is  one  of  the  amazing  features  of  Lee's 
career  that  he  carried  through  those  three  years  of  war 
largely  with  arms  and  supplies  captured  from  the 
enemy  armies :  it  seems  incredible ;  but  he  did  it. 

In  early  September,  1862,  Lee  crossed  into  Mary- 
land, and  issued  his  proclamation  to  the  people  of  the 
State.  That  document  is  so  characteristic  in  its  dig- 
nified restraint,  widely  differing  from  the  usual  mili- 
tary proclamation,  and  expresses  so  clearly  the  view 


ROBERT  E.  LEE 


273 


Lee  had  come  to  take  of  the  great  conflict,  that  it  is 
quoted  entire: 

"Headquarters,   Army    of   Northern   Virginia, 

"Sept.  8th,  1862. 
"To  the  People  of  Maryland : 

"It  is  right  that  you  should  know  the  purpose  that 
has  brought  the  army  under  my  command  within  the 
limits  of  your  State,  so  far  as  that  purpose  concerns 
yourselves. 

"The  people  of  the  confederate  States  have  long 
watched  with  the  deepest  sympathy  the  wrongs  and  out- 
rages that  have  been  inflicted  upon  the  citizens  of  a 
commonwealth,  allied  to  the  States  of  the  South  by  the 
strongest  social,  political  and  commercial  ties,  and  re- 
duced to  the  condition  of  a  conquered  province. 

"Under  the  pretence  of  supporting  the  Constitution, 
but  in  violation  of  its  most  valuable  provisions,  your 
citizens  have  been  arrested  and  imprisoned  upon  no 
charge,  and  contrary  to  all  the  forms  of  law. 

"A  faithful  and  manly  protest  against  this  outrage, 
made  by  a  venerable  and  illustrious  Marylander,  to 
whom  in  better  days  no  citizen  appealed  for  right  in 
vain,  was  treated  with  scorn  and  contempt. 

"The  government  of  your  chief  city  has  been  usurped 
by  armed  strangers — your  Legislature  has  been  dis- 
solved by  the  unlawful  arrest  of  its  members — freedom 
of  the  press  and  of  speech  has  been  suppressed — words 
have  been  declared  offences  by  an  arbitrary  decree  of 
the  Federal  Executive — and  citizens  ordered  to  be  tried 
by  military  commissions  for  what  they  may  dare  to 
speak. 

"Believing  that  the  people  of  Maryland  possess  a 
spirit  too  lofty  to  submit  to  such  a  government,  the 
people  of  the  South  have  long  wished  to   aid   you  in 


Lee's  Proclamation 
to  the  people  of 
Maryland,  giving 
his  view  of  the 
conflict. 


Significance  that 
Lee's  appeal  was 
wholly  in  the 
name  of  freedom 
and    justice, 


274  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

throwing  off  this  foreign  yoke,  to  enable  you  again  to 
enjoy  the  inalienable  rights  of  freemen,  and  restore 
the  independence  and  sovereignty  of  your  State. 

"In  obedience  to  this  wish  our  army  has  come  among 
you,  and  is  prepared  to  assist  you  with  the  power  of  its 
arms  in  regaining  the  rights  of  which  you  have  been 
so  unjustly  despoiled. 

"This,  citizens  of  Maryland,  is  our  mission,  so  far 
as  you  are  concerned.  No  restraint  upon  your  free 
will  is  intended — no  intimidation  will  be  allowed  within 
the  limits  of  this  army  at  least. 

"Marylanders  shall  once  more  enjoy  their  ancient 
freedom  of  thought  and  speech.  We  know  no  enemies 
among  you,  and  will  protect  all  of  you  in  every  opinion. 

"It  is  for  you  to  decide  your  destiny,  freely,  and  with- 
out constraint.  This  army  will  respect  your  choice, 
whatever  it  may  be ;  and  while  the  Southern  people  will 
rejoice  to  welcome  you  to  your  natural  position  among 
them,  they  will  only  welcome  you  when  you  come  of  your 
own  free  will." 

"R.  E.  Lee, 
"General   Commanding."* 

Maryland  did  not  rise  in  answer  to  this  appeal. 
McClellan  withdrew  to  Frederick,  and  Lee  followed. 
By  some  mischance,  Lee's  whole  plan  of  battle  was 
found,  wrapped  around  some  tobacco  and  carried  to 
Antietam.  McClellan.    Fortunately  for  Lee,  he  apparently  dis- 

covered in  time  that  McClellan  knew  his  plans; 
changed  swiftly  and  completely  his  order  of  battle; 
and  brought  the  engagement  at  Antietam :  one  of  the 


*  Lee,  Proclamation  to  the  People  of  Maryland,  Sept.  8th,  1862:  The 
Rebellion  Record,  edited  by  Frank  Moore,  New  York,  1865,  Supplement, 
Vol.  I,  Documents,  p.  755. 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  275 

bloodiest  battles  of  the  war,  excepting  Gettysburg. 
One  fourth  of  the  men  engaged  on  each  side  fell. 
Again  Lee's  superior  generalship  made  up  for  lesser 
numbers ;  and  after  Antietam,  Lee  withdrew  his  shat- 
tered army  across  the  Potomac  unmolested. 

Once  more   Stuart,  with   1,800  cavalrymen,   rode 

completely  around  McClellan's  army,  going  as  far 

44.  nu       u       i.  -d  i         •  -a-  io^    stuart's  second 

north  as   Chambersburg,   Pennsylvania;   riding   126   ride  around 

miles  in  two  days  and  eight  hours,  and  returning  with-  e  an  s  army' 

out  the  loss  of  a  man.  The  result  was,  President  Lin- 
coln dismissed  McClellan,  and  called  Burnside  to  the 
chief  command. 

Burnside  moved  on  Richmond  with  113,000  men. 
Lee  had  some  78,000.  The  culminating  engagement  Bumside's 
came  at  Fredericksburg,  Dec.  11th,  1862,  where  camP*ign. 
Burnside's  folly  resulted  in  the  slaughter  of  12,500 
Union  soldiers;  and  Burnside  withdrew.  There  was 
deep  depression  throughout  the  North.  The  South 
believed  the  war  was  over ;  but  Lee  knew  better. 

In  the   Spring  of  1863,  Lincoln  called  Hooker, 
"Fighting    Joe    Hooker",    to    the    chief    command.  Hooker's  campaign 

°  o  /#  in  the  Spring 

Hooker  had  all  the  qualities  McClellan  lacked;  and  of  1863. 
lacked  all  the  qualities  McClellan  had.  He  was  au- 
dacious, brilliant;  but  he  was  without  McClellan's 
caution  and  drill-mastery.  He  moved  south  in  April, 
with  an  admirably  equipped  army,  more  than  twice 
the  size  of  Lee's  opposing  army;  and  as  he  did  so, 
he  made  a  rather  profane  boast.  He  said  he  had  the 
Confederate  army  exactly'  where  he  wanted  it,  and 
God  Almighty  couldn't  snatch  a  victory  from  him 


276 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Chancellorsville. 


Jackson. 


now.  He  was  to  be  sadly  punished  for  his  boast.  Lee 
waited  with  his  little  army,  and  brought  the  culminat- 
ing engagement  at  Chancellorsville,  May  1st  and  2nd. 
1863;  where  Lee's  generalship,  with  Stonewall  Jack- 
son's fulfillment,  won  a  brilliant  victory.  These  two 
men  worked  together  with  a  perfect  harmony  one  finds 
Lee  and  stonewall  m  no  other  two  military  captains  in  history.  Lee 
was  the  greater  strategist,  with  more  brilliant  mili- 
tary imagination;  but  Jackson  could  carry  out  his 
great  captain's  plans,  not  only  with  entire  fidelity, 
but  with  clock-like  accuracy.  Thus,  the  two  working 
together,  in  a  flank  attack,  rolled  Hooker's  army 
upon  itself,  drove  a  portion  of  it  to  wild  panic  rout; 
and  after  the  two  days'  battle,  Hooker,  bewildered, 
was  glad  to  get  his  defeated  forces  back  across  the 
Rappahannock  to  safety. 

At  Chancellorsville,  however,  Lee  lost  what  he 
called  his  "right  arm" ;  for  Stonewall  Jackson,  in  the 
confusion  fired  upon  by  his  own  men,  was  mortally 
wounded,  and  died  a  little  time  after.  It  was  indeed 
the  loss  of  Lee's  right  arm,  worse  for  his  cause  than 
the  loss  of  many  battles. 

Again  the  North  was  in  sackcloth  and  ashes,  and 
the  South  exultant ;  but  Lee  saw  the  situation  truly. 
The  North  could  replace  her  losses;  the  South  could 
not.    She  was  already  using  what  Lee  called  her  "seed 

Lee's  wise  view 

of  the  situation      corn" :  those  splendid  young  striplings,  who  ought  to 

victory  at  "  mn  naye  been  the  fathers  of  tomorrow,  and  who  were 

Chancellorsville.      going  down  to  their  death  with  a  smile  on  their  lips, 

in  utter  devotion  to  their  beloved  leader  and  their 


The  loss  of  Lee's 
''right  arm." 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  277 

cause.  Thus,  unless  Lee  could  destroy  the  army  of  the 
Potomac,  his  victories  were  sterile.  No  matter  how 
many  brilliant  victories  he  might  win,  if  the  Union 
did  not  yield  to  discouragement  and  continued  to  re- 
place its  losses,  the  end  could  be  only  one  way.  Recog- 
nizing this,  Lee  appealed  to  the  President  of  the  Con-  His  plan  and 

-i  -m  •  appeal  to 

lederacy  to  concentrate  all  forces  at  two  points:  such  President  Davis, 
troops  as  were  needed  at  Vicksburg,  on  the  Missis- 
sippi, and  all  the  rest  in  Virginia,  letting  everything 
else  go  for  the  time  being.  Had  he  been  Commander- 
in-Chief  he  could  have  ordered  that;  but  as  Chief  of 
Staff  under  the  President,  he  could  only  appeal.  The 
President  and  Cabinet  only  partly  responded.  Lee 
took  such  reinforcements  as  they  gave  him,  and 
planned  his  second  campaign  into  the  North. 

At  this  time  Lee's  wife  was  ill,  his  daughter  dying. 
One  of  his  sons  was  wounded  and  in  a  Union  prison. 
That  son's  wife  was  dying.  Another  son  offered  to 
take  his  brother's  place;  and  the  Union  authorities 
refused!  Lee  buried  these  personal  sorrows  heroically;- 
in  his  heart,  and  went  forward  with  his  campaign. 

His  aim  was  to  maneuver  Hooker  out  of  his  posi- 
tion on  the  Rappahannock,  take  a  wide  sweep  around 
into  Pennsylvania,  and  bring  a  culminating  engage-  plan  and  purpose 
ment  at  York,  Gettysburg  or  Chambersburg,  with  the  of  Lee>  second 

J  °  °  campaign  into  the 

hope  of  destroying  the  army  of  the  Potomac,  subsist-  North, 
ing  his  own  army,  causing  the  evacuation  of  Wash- 
ington and  the  recall  of  the  troops  before  Vicksburg, 
and  so  bringing  the  Union  to  yield  the  Confederacy 
peace  with  independence. 


Personal  sorrows. 


278  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

He  easily  maneuvered  Hooker  out  of  his  position ; 
and  then  a  quarrel  between  Hooker  and  Halleck  re- 
sulted in  Meade's  being  given  the  command  in  the 
field.  Lee  executed  his  wide  sweep  into  Pennsylvania ; 
a  part  of  his  army  going  nearly  to  Harrisburg :  in  fact, 
would  have  taken  Harrisburg,  had  it  not  mistaken  the 
road.  The  culminating  engagement  came,  as  every- 
one knows,  at  Gettysburg,  July  1st  to  3rd,  1863:  one 
of  the  most  terrible  and  bloody  battles,  not  only  of 
the  Civil  War,  but  of  all  history.  Moreover,  we  Amer- 
The  significance      icans,  North  and  South,  have  every  reason  to  be  proud 

of  the  battle  of  J  £_ 

Gettysburg.  of  the  splendid  courage  shown  on  both  sides.     Those 

Union  soldiers  went  into  that  holocaust  of  destruc- 
tion with  unfaltering  courage.  Those  Southern 
troops,  gravely  outnumbered,  but  with  Lee's  general- 
ship compensating  for  this,  went  down  to  their  death 
with  dauntless  heroism.  The  battle  raged  through 
those  three  terrible  days,  until  both  sides  were  ex- 
hausted and  neither  could  attack  again.  That  should 
be  called  a  drawn  battle,  should  it  not?  It  was  a 
Union  victory  only  in  the  sense  that  Lee  had  failed 
of  the  object  of  his  campaign:  he  had  not  destroyed 
the  army  of  the  Potomac ;  and  was  forced  to  withdraw 
the  shattered  remnants  of  his  own  army  again  to 
Virginia  soil.  Meade  was  too  exhausted  to  follow,  at 
least  failed  to  pursue,  in  spite  of  Lincoln's  urging; 
and  Lee  had  three  months'  breathing  space  to  re- 
organize his  army. 

Concerning  Gettysburg,  as  other  great  battles,  mil- 
itary history  is  filled  with  fruitless  discussions  as  to 


Lee's  attitude 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  279 

what  would  have  happened  if  supporting  generals 
had  more  accurately  obeyed  orders  and  carried  out 
the  plans  of  their  chief.  It  is  characteristic  of  Lee's 
spirit  that  he  never  placed  on  a  subordinate,  blame  for  in  defeat. 
a  failure,  but  always  assumed  it  himself.  Some  days 
after  Gettysburg,  a  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  news- 
paper published  an  article,  blaming  one  of  Lee's  offi- 
cers for  the  failure  and  indirectly  attacking  the  Con- 
federate administration.  President  Davis  sent  the 
article  to  Lee,  who  replied  with  one  of  his  noblest  let- 
ters.   In  the  course  of  it  he  said : 

"No  blame  can  be  attached  to  the  army  for  its  fail- 
ure to  accomplish  what  was  projected  by  me,  nor  should 
it  be  censured  for  the  unreasonable  expectations  of  the 
public — I  am  alone  to  blame,  in  perhaps  expecting  too 
much  of  its  prowess  and  valor.     It  however  in  my  opin- 
ion achieved  under  the  guidance  of  the  Most  High  a        president  Davis 
general  success,   though   it   did  not  win   a  victory.      I        assuming  full 
thought  at  the  time  that  the  latter  was  practicable.     I        ^ttyrtwg.*7  ** 
still  think  if  all  things  could  have  worked  together  it 
would  have  been  accomplished.     But  with  the  knowledge 
I  then  had,  and  in  the  circumstances  I  was  then  placed, 
I  do  not  know  what  better  course  I  could  have  pur- 
sued."* 

A  few  days  later  he  wrote,  saying  that  when  a  mili- 
tary leader  failed,  usually  the  best  course  was  to  re- 
move him,  and  offered  to  resign ;  but  President  Davis 
wisely  would  not  hear  of  it. 

There  followed  some  months  of  desultory  fighting; 


*Lee,   in  letter  to  Pres.   Davis,   Camp   Culpepper,   July  31st,    1863 
Freeman,  Lee's  Dispatches,  p.  108. 


280 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  tide  turning 
with  Grant's 
appointment  as 
Commander    in 
Chief,  in  March, 
1864, 


Grant  and  Lee 
compared. 


Grant's  plan. 


and  in  the  Spring  of  1864,  the  tide  definitely  turned, 
with  the  emergence  of  Grant.  The  day  following 
Gettysburg,  July  4th,  1863,  Vicksburg  surrendered 
to  Grant.  This  was  followed  by  his  successes  at  Look- 
out Mountain  and  Missionary  Ridge.  Lincoln  had 
been  eagerly  watching,  praying  for  a  general  who 
could  stand  up  a  month  against  Robert  E.  Lee.  So 
in  March,  1864,  Lincoln  called  Grant  to  Washing- 
ton, and  made  him  Commander-in-Chief;  and  Grant 
began  the  campaign  that  ended  the  war. 

The  comparison  of  the  two  great  military  leaders 
is  interesting.  Grant  was  at  that  time  forty-two 
years  old;  Lee,  fifty-seven.  Lee  was  the  highly  cul- 
tivated Southern  aristocrat  and  Virginia  gentleman; 
Grant,  rather  rough  in  exterior,  somewhat  Western 
in  type.  Both  were  men  of  great  military  genius: 
Lee,  far  the  greater  strategist,  with  far  more  bril- 
liant imagination;  Grant,  with  dogged  determination 
and  indomitable  will.  Grant  had  a  splendidly 
equipped  and  provisioned  army  of  120,000  men;  Lee, 
perhaps  65,000,  ragged,  shoeless,  half-starved,  but 
dauntless.  Behind  Grant  were  the  inexhaustible  re- 
sources of  the  North,  in  men,  money  and  manufac- 
tures; behind  Lee,  an  exhausted  Southland.  So  the 
final  campaign  began. 

Grant  formulated  a  comprehensive  plan.  There 
were  to  be  no  more  maneuvers,  only  a  steady  drive. 
Early  in  May,  1864,  Grant  moved  south.  There 
followed  those  terrible  days  of  battle  in  the  Wilder- 
ness.   Lee  knew  every  country  road  and  by-path.    He 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  281 

completely  outgeneralled  Grant.     The  Union  losses 

were  enormous.    There  was  a  wail  all  over  the  North;  ?^®  ter2j?J^  days 

in  the  Wilderness. 

but  now  a  strange  thing  happened.     Hitherto,   a 
Union  general,  defeated  by  Lee,  moved  back,  in  re- 
treat; Grant,  defeated,  moved  forward:  that  is  what  Ma^nth^iset 
ended  the  war.     You  remember  his  famous  word  of  as  defining  the 

will  and  action 

May  11th,  1864:  "I  propose  to  fight  it  out  on  this  that,  with  the 
line,  if  it  takes  all  summer/'    Well,  it  took  all  sum-  union  resources, 
mer,  all  autumn,  all  winter  and  the  next  spring;  but  won  the  war* 
he  fought  it  out  on  that  line,  and  won  the  war. 

Grant  blundered  repeatedly.  At  Cold  Harbor,  he 
unnecessarily  sacrificed  thousands  of  men.  He  mis- 
takenly attempted  to  storm  Petersburg,  and  wasted 
another  10,000.  Grant's  losses  during  the  whole  cam- 
paign were  greater  than  Lee's  entire  army  opposed  to 
him.  There  was  growing  bitterness  and  resentment  Grant's  frightful 
throughout  the  North;  Greeley  was  shrieking  in  the 
New  York  Tribune  to  end  the  hopeless  war  and  hor- 
rible butchery;  but  Grant,  with  Lincoln  steadfast  be- 
hind him,  pushed  on.  Lee  sent  Early,  in  a  last  at- 
tempt to  take  Washington;  but  Lew  Wallace  saved 
Washington,  till  Grant  could  send  reinforcements. 

Steady  hammering  gradually  wore  away  the  granite 
rock  of  Lee's  resistance.     By  the  Spring  of  1865,  constant 
Lee's  army  had  dwindled  to  30,000  men;  and  there   hammering 

J  '  depleting  Lee  s 

were  no  more  to  be  called  to  fill  the  broken  ranks,  forces  to  30,000, 
Grant  was  closing  in  with  100,000  troops.    Lee  made   lfees,  wit^nxfmore 
a  last  desperate  stand  at  Five  Forks,  and  failed.  April 
1st,  Petersburg  fell.    April  2nd,  Richmond  was  aban- 
doned.   April  3rd,  it  was  occupied  by  Union  troops. 


men  to  be  called. 


282 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Last  days  of 
the  war. 


Lee's  humane 
decision. 


Circumstances  of 
Lee's  surrender. 


Lee  attempted  to  retreat  on  Danville,  and  was 
blocked.  He  changed  his  route  toward  Lynchburg, 
and  was  stopped ;  and  he  made  his  humane  decision. 

Now  see:  Lee's  army  was  unbroken  in  spirit,  still 
dauntless  in  courage.  Lee  could  have  divided  his  little 
army,  and  carried  on  guerrilla  warfare  for  months, 
perhaps  years  of  time ;  and  gone  down  to  history,  un- 
beaten and  unsurrendered  as  a  military  captain;  but 
he  said,  No!  the  final  issue  is  the  same  anyway,  and  I 
will  not  sacrifice  a  single  unnecessary  man.  So  he 
made  his  overtures  in  response  to  Grant's  appeal. 
Grant  gave  generous  terms:  the  Southern  soldiers 
were  to  keep  their  side  arms  and  their  horses,  and  go 
home ;  only  giving  their  word  that  they  would  not  take 
arms  against  the  Union,  during  the  remainder  of  the 
war,  or  until  exchanged. 

So,  on  April  9th,  1865,  at  Appomattox  Court 
House,  Virginia,  Lee  surrendered  his  ragged,  daunt- 
less army;  and  walked  away,  head  up,  silent,  erect, 
military  bearing  unchanged.  Only  God  and  General 
Lee  knew  what  thoughts  were  in  his  heart  at  that 
hour. 

Those  half-starved  Confederate  soldiers  instantly 
fraternized  with  the  Union  troops,  and  ate  the  first 
good  meal  they  had  had  for  months,  on  the  ample 
Union  rations.  Soldiers  do  not  hate;  big  men  do  not 
hate:  it  is  little  men,  who  stay  at  home  and  elaborate 
their  hooded  viper  poison,  who  hate. 

Five  days  after  the  surrender,  occurred  the  assas- 
sination of  Lincoln.     Lee  bitterly  deplored  and  con- 


ROBERT  E.  LEE  283 

Jemned  the  act.     He  knew  what  it  meant  for  the 

South:  the  removal  of  that  great,  kindly,  merciful  reGgret  over  the 

figure,  whose  chief  aim,  during  the  last  two  years  of  of8^1^*1011 

the  war,  had  been  to  forestall  the  hate  of  little  men 

and  the  revenge  he  knew  they  would  seek  upon  the 

South,  once  the  Union  had  achieved  victory. 

Lee  went  to  Richmond,  where  he  was  greeted  as  a 
conquering  hero,  as  indeed  he  was.     Then,  if  you  The  indictment 
please,  a  couple  of  months  later,  a  grand  jury  at  Gra^>r/°-1u8tand 
Norfolk,  Virginia,  composed  of  negroes  and  white  conduct. 
trash,  indicted  Lee  for  treason!    When  Grant  heard 
the  news,  he  was  indignant.     He  said  it  was  directly 
against  the  terms  of  surrender  he  had  given  Lee ;  and 
through     Grant's    influence,     the     indictment     was  Lee's  attitude  in 
quashed.    To  the  astonishment  of  many  in  the  South,  for  pardon. 
in  June,  Lee  applied  for  pardon,  under  the  Amnesty 
proclamation.    His  Southern  friends  could  not  under- 
stand that;  but  Lee's  attitude  was:  if  I  surrender,  I 
surrender  completely ;  if  we  are  going  into  the  Union, 
we  will  go  whole  heartedly,  and  seek  to  heal  the  scars 
and  close  the  wounds.     So  he  applied  for  pardon, 
sending  his  application  papers  through  Grant.  Grant 
laid  them  before  our  government;  and  no  notice  was 
taken  of  them;  and,  to  the  shame  of  the  North,  be  it 
said,  Lee  died  five  years  later,  a  prisoner  on  parole! 

Numerous  offers  of  employment  were  made  to  him. 
One  corporation  is  said  to  have  offered  him  a  large  Employment. 
sum  per  year,  just  for  the  use  of  his  name.     Lee's 
response  is  said  to  have  been:  "Well,  if  my  name  is 
so  valuable,  I  would  better  be  careful  how  it  is  used"; 


284 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


and  he  refused.  Would  there  were  more  like  him  in 
the  land !  He  declined  the  Rectorship  of  the  Univers- 
ity of  Virginia;  he  declined  the  Presidency  of  the 
University  of  the  South,  at  Sewanee,  Tennessee;  he 
refused  to  stand  for  the  Governorship  of  Virginia :  he 
would  have  been  elected  unanimously.  Finally,  the 
trustees  of  little  Washington  College,  at  Lexington, 
Virginia,  now  appropriately,  Washington  and  Lee 
University,  asked  him  if  he  would  not  please  be  their 
President. 

It  was  a  small,  struggling  college,  paying  its  Presi- 
dent perhaps  fifteen  hundred  dollars  a  year.  It  looked 
humble  enough  even  for  Lee's  beautiful  modesty;  but 
Lee  was  not  sure.  In  his  letter  to  the  trustees,  he 
said: 

"I  think  it  is  the  duty  of  every  citizen  in  the  present 
condition  of  the  country,  to  do  all  in  his  power  to  aid 
in  the  restoration  of  peace  and  harmony,  and  in  no  way 
to  oppose  the  policy  of  the  State  or  General  Govern- 
ments, directed  to  that  object."* 

If  he  could  further  that  aim,  he  would  serve ;  so  Lee 
accepted,  and  spent  the  last  five  years  of  his  life  edu- 
cating citizens  for  our  America.  His  whole  conse- 
crated effort  was  to  overcome  the  hate  and  bitterness, 
cultivate  harmony.  the  war  ^aj  jef^  anc[  cultivate  union  and  harmony. 
His  generous  attitude  is  well  expressed  in  a  letter, 
written  in  August,  1865: 


Lee's  purpose  in 
accepting  the 
Presidency  of 
Washington 
College. 


Lee's  magnani- 
mous efforts  to 


*  Lee,  letter  to  the  Trustees  of  Washington  College,  when  offered  the 
Presidency:     Jones,  Life  and  Letters  of  Lee,  pp.  408,  409. 


ROBERT  E.  LEE 


285 


"The  questions  which  for  years  were  in  dispute  be- 
tween the  State  and  General  Government,  and  which 
unhappily  were  not  decided  by  the  dictates  of  reason, 
but  referred  to  the  decision  of  war,  having  been  decided 
against  us,  it  is  the  part  of  wisdom  to  acquiesce  in  the 
result,  and  of  candor  to  recognize  the  fact. 

"The  interests  of  the  State  are  therefore  the  same  as 
those  of  the  United  States.  Its  prosperity  will  rise  or 
fall  with  the  welfare  of  the  country.  The  duty  of  its 
citizens,  then,  appears  to  me  too  plain  to  admit  of  doubt. 
All  should  unite  in  honest  efforts  to  obliterate  the  ef- 
fects of  war,  and  to  restore  the  blessings  of  peace. 
They  should  remain,  if  possible,  in  the  country ;  promote 
harmony  and  good  feeling;  qualify  themselves  to  vote; 
and  elect  to  the  State  and  general  Legislatures  wise 
and  patriotic  men,  who  will  devote  their  abilities  to  the 
interests  of  the  country,  and  the  healing  of  all  dissen- 
sions. I  have  invariably  recommended  this  course  since 
the  cessation  of  hostilities,  and  have  endeavored  to  prac- 
tise it  myself."* 

In  1866,  to  a  Union  officer,  living  in  Lincoln's  state, 
who  had  been  a  friend  in  earlier  years,  Lee  wrote : 

"I  must  give  you  my  special  thanks  for  doing  me  the 
justice  to  believe  that  my  conduct  during  the  last  five 
eventful  years  has  been  governed  by  my  sense  of  duty. 
I  had  no  other  guide,  nor  had  I  any  other  object  than 
the  defense  of  those  principles  of  American  liberty  upon 
which  the  constitutions  of  the  several  States  were  origi- 
nally founded;  and,  unless  they  are  strictly  observed, 
I  fear  there  will  be  an  end  to  Republican  government 
in   this   country.      I   have   endeavored   to   pursue   this 


Statement  of 
Lee's  view  of 
reconstruction  in 
the  letter  to  John 
Letcher. 


The  letter  to 
Captain  May,  of 
Illinois,  giving 
Lee's   fundamental 
conviction. 


*Lee,  in  letter  to  Hon.  John  Letcher,  Near  Cartersville,  Va.,  August 
28th,  1865;  Jones,  Personal  Reminiscences,  p.  203. 


The  last  chapter. 


286  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

course  myself  since  the  cessation  of  hostilities,  and  have 
recommended  it  to  others."* 

In  the  Spring  of  1870,  Lee  was  ill  and  broken.  He 
went  away,  on  vacation,  in  search  of  health.  He  went 
to  visit  the  grave  of  his  daughter,  who  had  died  during 
the  war,  while  her  father  was  at  the  front.  He  stopped 
at  Virginia  Hot  Springs;  did  not  get  better;  came 
home,  and  grew  rapidly  worse.  During  the  last  hours, 
his  mind  wandered,  evidently  going  over  his  old  bat- 
tles; for  almost  his  last  words  were,  "Tell  Hill  he  must 
come  up!"  So  October  12th,  1870,  Lee  died,  sixty- 
three  years  old. 

Nature's  nobleman,  he  was,  of  high  and  spotless 

personal  life ;  with  absolute  integrity  of  character,  un- 

Summary  of  Lee     varying  in  obedience  to  duty  as  the  guiding  principle 

in  character  ptpi  •-!•  •  1        a        i      ci 

and  conduct.  ol  lite;  the  greatest  military  genius  the  Anglo-Saxon 

race  has  produced,  not  excepting  George  Washington 
and  the  Duke  of  Wellington ;  so  fine  and  lofty  in  char- 
acter and  conduct,  as  to  furnish  an  example  for  imita- 
tion by  the  youth  of  America,  North,  South,  East  and 
West;  loved  by  his  own  people  with  an  enthusiastic 
devotion  given  to  no  other  American,  not  excepting 
Washington ;  incarnating  all  that  is  noblest  and  best  in 
that  beautiful,  passionate  and  loyal  Southland,  which 
is  today  so  precious  a  part  in  our  united  America. 

*  Lee,  in  letter  to  Captain  James  May,  of  Rock  Island,  Ills.,  Lexing- 
ton, Va.,  July  9th,  1866:     Jones,  Personal  Reminiscences,  p.  218. 


VI 
LINCOLN:  THE  PROPHETIC  AMERICAN 

FDR  our  closing  study,  we  come  to  that  great  man, 
to  whom  the  nation  turned  in  its  hour  of  sorest 
crial,  on  whom  it  laid  its  heaviest  burden,  through 
whom  the  Union  was  reborn  and  present  day  America 
made  possible,  and  who,  in  character  and  leadership, 
represents  all  that  we  hope  democracy  will  some  day; 
be. 

There  could  scarcely  be  a  greater  contrast,  in  back- 
ground and  early  experience  of  life,  than  between  Contrast  in  family 
Lee  and  Lincoln:  The  one,  a  fine  flower  of  that  beau-   eL^eZLme^t 
tiful  Southern  aristocracy,  with  a  rich  cultural  en-   ?f.  Le?  and 

J  .  Lincoln. 

vironment,  and  excellent  preparation  for  the  business 
of  life;  the  other,  of  the  poorest  of  poor  wandering 
nomads,  at  the  very  bottom  of  the  pioneer  ladder,  with 
no  material  equipment  for  life  at  all :  the  one,  incarnat- 
ing all  that  was  best  and  most  beautiful  in  the  past; 
the  other,  prophetic,  of  the  future  that  is  to  be. 

Lincoln  was  born  at  Hodgenville,  Kentucky, 
February  12th,  1809.  He  was  thus  two  years  younger 
than  Lee.  Lincoln,  throughout  his  life,  regarded  his 
family  as  of  common  stock  on  both  sides.  The  ad- 
mirers among  his  biographers  have  done  their  best  to 
rehabilitate  his  family  tree ;  and  they  have  discovered, 

287 


288 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  Lincoln 
family  history. 


The  grandfather, 
Abraham   Lincoln. 


and  established  beyond  question,  that  Lincoln's  father, 
Thomas  Lincoln,  was  of  the  sixth  generation,  in  direct 
line  of  descent,  from  certain  sturdy  English  yeoman 
Lincolns,  who  came  over  and  settled  at  Salem,  Massa- 
chusetts in  1637,  and  at  Hingham  in  1640. 

The  Lincolns,  however,  were  from  the  beginning 
wandering  stock.  It  is  true,  they  loved  land;  and 
wherever  they  went,  bought  it  or  took  it  up ;  but  they 
wandered  across  Massachusetts,  through  New  York 
into  New  Jersey;  over  into  Pennsylvania;  down  into 
southern  Pennsylvania;  thence  into  Virginia;  and 
the  immediate  grandfather  of  Lincoln,  also  named 
Abraham,  took  his  wife  and  children,  and  moved  still 
further  west  into  Kentucky,  then,  of  course,  Virginia 
territory. 

The  grandfather  was  working  in  the  field  one  day, 
when  an  Indian  killed  him;  seized  the  little  six  year 
old  Thomas,  and  was  about  to  kill  him,  when  an  elder 
brother,  from  the  house,  shot  the  Indian.  This 
Thomas  was  to  be  Lincoln's  father.  The  incident  is 
mentioned  merely  to  indicate  how  all  the  hardship  and 
adventure  of  frontier  life  were  behind  Lincoln. 

The  biographers  have  similarly  tried  to  rehabilitate 
the  family  of  Nancy  Hanks,  Lincoln's  mother;  but 
Lincoln's  mother,  with  less  success.  Certainly,  at  the  time  she  married 
toSmU^8'  aM  Thomas  Lincoln,  Nancy  Hanks  and  her  relatives 
were  of  those  "poor  whites",  pushed  ever  out  or  mov- 
ing out,  to  the  newer  frontier,  to  escape  the  degrading 
competition  with  slave  labor.  Nancy  Hanks  herself, 
however,  was  a  rare  flower  of  the  forest;  sensitive, 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  289 

highly  emotional,  there  are  stories  of  her  intense  re- 
sponse to  those  wild  religious  revivals,  that  furnished 
one  of  the  few  emotional  outlets  for  the  frontier.  She 
had  obtained  a  little  education.  Why  she  married  the 
rather  shiftless  Thomas  Lincoln,  is  a  question:  pos- 
sibly, as  one  story  tells,  as  a  result  of  the  excitement 
of  one  of  those  same  religious  revivals.  In  any  case, 
she  did  marry  him,  when  she  was  twenty-two  and  he 
was  twenty-eight  years  old.*  Three  children  were 
born  of  the  union:  a  daughter,  two  years  older,  who 
grew  up  to  womanhood,  married,  and  died  without 
leaving  children,  Lincoln,  and  a  boy  who  did  not  sur- 
vive infancy. 

The  father  had  largely  abandoned  his  carpenter's 
trade,  and  taken  a  poor  farm  at  Hodgenville.    When 
Lincoln  was  a  child  of  three,  Thomas  Lincoln  gave  carp^nter  and  **' 
up  this  farm  and    moved  a  dozen  miles  to  another  farmer- 
somewhat  better  farm.     When  Lincoln  was  a  child 
of  seven,  Thomas  Lincoln  decided  to  abandon  Ken- 
tucky altogether.     He  sold  his  farm  for  twenty  dol- 
lars and  four  hundred  gallons  of  whiskey ;  loaded  the 
stuff;  crossed  to  the  Ohio,  and  over  the  river;  and 
filed  a  claim  for  a  forest  farm  in  Spencer  County, 
southern  Indiana,  returning  to  bring  over  his  family  The  settlement  in 
and  belongings.    On  his  new  claim,  he  built  a  "half-  indfana.   ount^ 


*  William  E.  Barton  has  established  the  fact,  which  Lincoln  himself 
believed,  that  Nancy  Hanks  was  the  daughter  of  Lucy  Hanks,  born 
seven  years  before  the  latter's  marriage  to  Henry  Sparrow.  The  tradi- 
tion that  Nancy  Hanks's  father  was  a  well-to-do  Virginia  planter  has 
never  been  authenticated. 

See  Barton,  Life  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  Vol.  I,  Chapter  IV. 


290 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Death  of  Lincoln' 
mother. 


Circumstances  of 
Thomas  Lincoln's 
second  marriage. 


Lincoln's 
relation  to  his 
step-mother. 


The  boy  Lincoln' 
tenderness  for 
animals. 


faced  camp,"  that  is,  a  shack  with  three  sides  and  an 
open  front,  in  which  the  family  lived  for  a  year.  The 
next  year,  Thomas  Lincoln  rose  to  the  dignity  of  a 
one-room,  four-walled  cabin,  with  a  loft  over  it. 

The  hardships  of  pioneer  life  were,  however,  too 
much  for  the  sensitive  mother ;  and  the  year  that  Lin- 
coln approached  the  age  of  ten,  Nancy  Hanks  Lin- 
coln died,  of  one  of  those  epidemics  that  scourge  the 
frontier,  called  in  this  instance  milk  sickness,  and  was 
buried  in  a  lonely  grave  in  the  forest.  For  the  fol- 
lowing months  the  family  was  in  the  care  of  the  girl 
of  twelve.  The  next  year,  Thomas  Lincoln  went  back 
to  Kentucky,  and  wooed  successfully  a  widow  with 
three  children,  whom  he  had  unsuccessfully  courted 
before  her  first  marriage;  and  brought  her  back,  as 
his  second  wife.  She  seems  to  have  been  of  rather 
forceful  character;  she  had  something  more  in  the 
way  of  household  utensils,  and  she  set  about,  as  she 
expressed  it,  trying  to  make  Thomas  Lincoln's  chil- 
dren a  little  more  human. 

Lincoln's  relation  to  his  second  mother  was  very 
warm  and  tender.  She  seems  to  have  had  for  him, 
not  only  deepening  affection,  but  steadily  growing 
respect,  because  of  his  utter  integrity  of  character: 
that  was  what  distinguished  him  from  the  beginning. 

The  chief  fact  that  stands  out  from  Lincoln's  earli- 
est years  is  his  tenderness  for  animals.  He  was  re- 
peatedly whipped  for  releasing  trapped  animals.  He 
would  never  carry  a  gun.  One  traditional  story  is 
especially  significant:    Lincoln  had  frightened  away 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  291 

a  fawn  just  as  the  hunter  was  about  to  fire  at  it;  and 
a  boy  comrade  remembered,  later  in  life,  his  puzzled 
bewilderment  when  the  lad,  Lincoln,  remarked,  "God 
might  think  as  much  of  that  fawn  as  of  some  people." 

Lincoln's  schooling  was  extremely  meager,  more 
so  than  in  the  case  of  any  of  the  statesmen  previously 
studied.  He  had  learned  his  letters  from  his  own 
mother;  and  he  had  a  few  sporadic  months  of  irregu-  extremely  meager 
lar  schooling  from  wandering  masters,  who  came  by,  sc  °° ing' 
set  up  a  frontier  school  for  a  month  or  two,  then  closed 
it  and  moved  on. 

Lincoln  was,  however,  a  natural  student,  from  the 
beginning,  with  a  passion  for  reading  and  knowing. 
He  never  read  rapidly  or  very  widely,  but  he  read 
thoughtfully,  and  he  had  a  most  tenacious  mind,  so 
that  whatever  he  did  read  was  his  for  life.  We  know 
that  during  his  earliest  years  he  had:  the  Bible,  Pil- 
grim's Progress,  Aesop's  Fables,  Robinson  Crusoe,  ?hat  mmiide?8 
a  short  History  of  the  United  States,  Weems's  eulo-  Lincoln's 

u  ,  character. 

gistic  Life  of  Washington  and,  probably,  Franklin's 
Autobiography:  few,  but  all  great  books;  and  Lin- 
coln absorbed  them,  made  them  part  of  the  very  fibre 
of  his  character,  as  well  as  of  his  mind.  Then,  in  the 
Indiana  days,  he  early  came  upon  a  copy  of  the  In- 
diana Statutes.  That  does  not  seem  like  very  inspir-  Value  of  the 
ing  reading;  but  it  was  Lincoln's  first  introduction  to  ZVianl  Statutes 
the  Law,  and  he  was  at  once  interested  in  it,  as  living  ™  Lincoln's 

00    development. 

the  foundation  principles  of  government  and  of  hu- 
man society.  The  book  contained,  moreover,  a  com- 
plete copy  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  the 


292 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Influence  of  the 
Declaration   of 
Independence  on 
Lincoln's 
permanent 
program  of 
Ideas. 


Early  developed 
abundant  humor. 


Education  by  hard 
manual  labor. 


The  youthful 
Lincoln. 


nation's  birth  charter,  as  written  by  Thomas  Jeffer- 
son. It  fascinated  Lincoln,  and  he  made  it  part  of 
himself.  Indeed,  this  document  had  more  influence 
than  any  other  literary  production  on  Lincoln's 
permanent  convictions  and  on  his  entire  career. 

Lincoln's  abundant  sense  of  humor  early  developed. 
This,  in  contrast  to  his  temperamental  melancholy, 
was  the  balancing  grace  in  his  character,  perhaps  sav- 
ing him  from  insanity  in  certain  crises  of  his  life.  It 
showed  at  first,  and  for  long,  in  retelling  those  con- 
ventional country-store  stories,  which  furnished  the 
staple  of  frontier  humor,  and  alas!  are  still  a  large 
element  in  our  boasted  American  humor.  Lincoln's 
forte,  however,  lay  in  the  literary  skill  with  which  he 
retold  these  stories,  so  that  they  caught  the  imagina- 
tion of  his  audience,  frequently  giving  him  credit  for 
inventing  what  he  had  merely  borrowed  and  skillfully 
redressed. 

Until  he  was  twenty-one,  his  labor  was,  of  course, 
his  father's.  At  sixteen  he  was  working  out  at  six 
dollars  a  month,  and  turning  the  money  over  to  his 
father.  We  hear  of  him  slaughtering  hogs  at  thirty- 
one  cents  a  day :  that  must  have  been  particularly  try- 
ing labor  for  one  with  his  instinctive  tenderness  for 
animals.  He  developed  great  physical  strength,  and 
was  regarded  as  an  unusually  skillful  rail  splitter. 
Moreover,  in  a  society  much  given  to  drink  and  im- 
morality, he  was  marked  by  entire  sobriety  and  per- 
sonal purity.  By  the  age  of  nineteen,  he  had  already 
reached  his  full  height  of  six  feet,  four  inches.     So 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  293 

Lincoln  grew  up,  a  tall,  gaunt,  awkward  backwoods- 
man, welcomed  everywhere  in  the  neighborhood  for 
his  good  comradeship,  abundant  humor  and  story  tell- 
ing, but  a  solitary,  brooding  soul  within:  a  kind  of 
feminine  soul  in  a  masculine  body. 

The  year  that  Lincoln  was  nineteen,  he  had  his  first 
opportunity  for  a  look  out  on  the  big  world :  he  floated 
down  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  rivers  to  New  Orleans,  the  larger  awor7d. 
as  a  hand  on  a  flat  boat.  New  Orleans  was  an  active, 
important  port  city,  in  constant  intercourse  with  Eu- 
rope, largely  French  and  Spanish  in  population.  It 
was  Lincoln's  first  contact  with  cosmopolitan  civiliza- 
tion. He  saw  it  wholly  from  the  under  side;  but  he 
saw  it,  and  it  must  deeply  have  affected  him,  though 
he  apparently  had  little  to  say  about  it  on  his  return. 

The  year  that  Lincoln  was  twenty-one,  the  wander- 
ing  mood  again  seized  his  father;  and  spurred  on  by  circumstances  of 
another  of  those  frontier  epidemics,  Thomas  Lincoln  ^t^^iinn  i 
loaded  his  family  and  belongings  into  a  wagon,  trekked 
across  Indiana  into  Illinois,  on  into  central  Illinois, 
and  stopped  about  ten  miles  west  of  Decatur,  on  the 
banks  of  the  Sangamon.  Here  Lincoln  helped  his 
father  clear  another  piece  of  land;  and  now  twenty- 
two,  he  felt  that  he  had  done  his  part  for  his  family, 
and  struck  out  for  himself.  Understand,  he  did  not 
desert  his  family ;  all  through  the  years  he  recurrinedy  Lincoln's 

J  '  o  J  o  J     independent  start 

responded  to  their  appeals  and  needs,  even  when  his  at  twenty-two. 
own   circumstances   were   straitened.      One   shiftless 
step-brother,  in  particular,  was  continually  appealing 
to  him  for  money,  and  usually  getting  it,  no  matter 


294 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Odd  jobs  in  the 
neighborhood. 


The  second  trip 
to  New  Orleans. 


how  hard  it  was  to  send ;  but  from  the  age  of  twenty- 
two,  Lincoln  never  lived  in  his  father's  home  again. 

He  did  all  sorts  of  odd  jobs  in  the  neighborhood. 
One  contract  has  come  down,  in  which  he  agrees  to 
"split  four  hundred  rails,  for  each  yard  of  brown 
jeans  for  trousers";  rather  expensive  trousers,  one 
would  think,  in  terms  of  hard  manual  labor.  Then, 
the  same  year  he  left  his  father's  house,  came  his  sec- 
ond opportunity  for  a  brief  contact  with  the  larger 
world.  Again  he  went  to  New  Orleans;  this  time 
in  charge  of  a  shipment  of  freight  a  local  merchant 
wanted  to  dispose  of  in  that  port  city.  It  was  on  this 
second  visit  that  Lincoln  saw  the  New  Orleans  slave 
market;  and  although  the  remark  attributed  to  him 
was  doubtless  invented  by  his  admirers  afterwards, 
the  experience  must  deeply  have  impressed  him. 

He  returned,  and  the  merchant  who  had  sent  him 
South  made  Lincoln  "Manager"  of  his  store  in  New 
Salem,  which  means  that  he  was  the  one  clerk  in  the 
store.  The  business  failed  shortly  after,  however,  and 
Lincoln  was  again  out  of  a  job.  He  decided  to  offer 
himself  as  a  candidate  for  the  State  Legislature,  is- 
suing a  quaintly  characteristic  announcement;  but 
was  not  elected.  During  this  period,  Lincoln  had 
his  one  brief  chapter  of  active  military  experience, 
though  with  no  actual  righting,  in  the  Black  Hawk 
Indian  war.  His  standing  with  his  young  comrades 
was  shown,  much  to  his  gratification,  by  his  election 
as  captain  of  the  voluntary  company ;  his  own  simple 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  295 

modesty  by  his  immediate  re-enlistment,  as  private, 
on  its  disbandment. 

Then  he  and  a  young  friend,  named  Berry,  decided  ^  ,  , .     . 

J 9         &  '  J '  Berry  and  Lincoln 

to  start  out  in  business  for  themselves.  They  opened  a8  general 
a  store  in  New  Salem  as  "General  Merchants,"  pur- 
chasing the  stock  almost  entirely  on  credit;  but  Berry 
was  rather  idle  and  given  to  drink,  and  Lincoln 
wanted  to  read  all  the  time ;  so  the  business  languished. 
At  this  time,  Lincoln  would  walk  twenty  miles  to 
Springfield  to  borrow  a  book.  It  was  now  that  he 
came  to  know  Burns  and  Shakespeare;  and  they  be-  Lincoln's  reading. 
came  his  life  companions,  to  whom  he  turned,  all 
through  the  years,  for  personal  solace  and  spiritual 
companionship. 

One  incident  of  Lincoln's  brief  business  career  is 
worth  retelling:  a  traveller  came  by  with  a  barrel  of 
rubbish  he  wished  to  dispose  of,  and  offered  it  to  Lin- 
coln for  a  half  dollar.  Lincoln  took  a  chance  and 
bought  it ;  and  upending  the  barrel,  out  of  the  bottom 
dropped  Blackstone's  Commentaries!  A  singular  Circumstances 
place  to  find  that  classic  on  the  Law;  but  if  the  story  Blackstone's 

,1      .  i  T  •  t        /»  j    .,         rpn  .  Commentaries, 

is  true,  that  was  where  Lincoln  found  it.     I  his  was   and  the  effect  of 
his  second  and  greater  introduction  to  the  Law,  as  LincoinUme  °n 
giving  the  foundation  principles  of  society  and  gov- 
ernment.   Lincoln  was  fascinated  by  the  book  and  ab- 
sorbed it. 

The  business  soon  failed;  and  although  Lincoln 
was  neither  legally  nor  morally  bound  to  do  so,  he 
took  the  whole  partnership  debt  upon  himself,  and 
paid  it  off  with  scrupulous  fidelity.     It  took  him  fif- 


296 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Business  failure 
and  scrupulous 
honesty  in  paying 
the  partnership 
debt. 


Early  political 
services. 


Lincoln  as 
Postmaster  at 
New  Salem. 


The  one  deep 
love  affair  of 
Lincoln's  life. 


teen  years  to  do  it.  He  used  to  refer  to  it,  jestingly, 
as  the  "National  Debt";  but  it  burdened  him  until  he 
was  forty.  At  that  age,  when  Representative  in  Con- 
gress, he  sent  back  part  of  his  salary  to  pay  items  of 
that  old  partnership  debt:  a  further  signal  illustra- 
tion of  that  utter  integrity  of  character  that  was 
Lincoln. 

He  served  for  a  time  as  assistant  to  the  County 
Surveyor  and  as  Postmaster.  He  was,  for  the  second 
time,  a  candidate  for  the  State  Legislature;  was 
elected;  went  to  Vandalia  and  served  his  term,  mak- 
ing no  impression  whatever.  Returning  to  New 
Salem,  he  continued  as  local  Postmaster,  carrying  the 
mail  around  in  his  hat,  but  delivering  it  with  great 
carefulness.  Indeed,  Lincoln's  hat,  afterwards  the 
famous  high  silk  hat,  was  always  his  favorite  place 
for  carrying  memoranda  and  letters,  even  as  Presi- 
dent in  the  White  House. 

At  this  period,  occurred  the  one  deep  love  affair  of 
Lincoln's  life.  Sweet,  lovely,  sensitive  Ann  Rutledge, 
who  must  in  some  ways  have  reminded  Lincoln  of 
his  own  mother,  was  the  daughter  of  the  family  in 
the  house  where  Lincoln  boarded.  She  had  engaged 
herself  to  a  young  man  from  the  East.  He  had  gone 
back  home ;  his  letters  stopped.  It  was  even  rumored 
in  the  neighborhood  that  he  had  been  married  at  the 
time  he  courted  Ann  Rutledge;  and  the  poor  girl 
was  in  deep  distress,  not  knowing  whether  she  was 
bound  or  free.  Lincoln  was  deeply  drawn  to  her, 
and  came  to  love  her  very  tenderly.    Finally,  she  felt 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  297 

sufficiently  free  to  engage  herself  to  marry  Lincoln; 
but  whether  the  cause  was  her  mental  and  spiritual 
distress  or  another  of  those  scourging  epidemics, 
sweet  Ann  Rutledge  died,  the  year  that  Lincoln  was 
twenty-six. 

It  was  Lincoln's  first  great  spiritual  crisis,  shock- 
ing his  solitary,  brooding  soul  into  consciousness  of 
the  transiency  of  human  life,  of  the  frail  foundation  spiritual  crisis  on 
on  which  our  happiness  must  ever  rest.  He  went  incon- 
away,  for  a  time,  in  deep  distress  and  melancholy.  His 
friends  even  feared  for  his  sanity.  It  was  perhaps  at 
this  time  Lincoln  came  to  love  the  poem  that  remained 
his  favorite,  and  its  recurring  refrain  was  his  favorite 
and  most  often  quoted  line:  "O  why  should  the  spirit 
of  mortal  be  proud !" 

Lincoln  returned  to  New  Salem,  and  stood  again 
for  the  State  Legislature,  was  elected,  and  served  his 
term.  During  it,  he  and  his  associates,  by  the  con-  inThe^tate"1 
ventional  "log-rolling"  methods  of  politics  of  those  Lesislature- 
days,  and  alas !  of  these  days,  succeeded  in  getting  the 
Capital  removed  from  Vandalia  to  Springfield.  It 
was  a  wise  step  to  move  it,  but  that  was  not  why  they 
did  it ;  they  wanted  it  near  by. 

During  these  years,  Lincoln  had  been  assiduously 
studying  law,  in  every  spare  moment ;  and  at  twenty-   Lincoln's 
eight  he  felt  ready  to  take  his  examinations;  which  he   ^f^ 
passed  successfully  and  was  admitted  to  the  Bar.    So   to  Springfield. 
he  decided  to  remove  to  Springfield,  which  he  and  his 
friends  had  recently  made  the  State  Capital,  to  begin 
the  practice  of  the  Law. 


298 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Occasion  of 
forming  Lincoln's 
most  intimate 
friendship. 


Engagement  and 
marriage  to 
Mary  Todd. 


Joshua  Speed  tells  the  story  of  how  Lincoln  came 
into  Speed's  store  in  Springfield,  threw  down  his  sad- 
dle bags,  and  asked  something  about  a  lodging. 
Speed  glanced  up;  and  says  that  he  thought  he  had 
never  looked  into  so  sad  a  face  in  all  his  life.  Moved 
by  a  sudden  impulse,  he  said,  to  the  effect,  "O,  I  have 
a  room  with  a  double  bed  in  it;  if  you  want  to  share 
that,  till  you  get  on  your  feet  and  find  out  what  you 
are  going  to  do,  it's  all  right  with  me."  Lincoln 
gladly  accepted,  and  it  was  the  beginning  of  the  clos- 
est friendship  of  Lincoln's  life.  Please  note  that  Lin- 
coln did  not  have  intimate  friends.  He  never  got  on 
well  in  polite  society,  so  there  was  no  chance  there. 
True,  the  men  everywhere  liked  him,  for  his  good  com- 
radeship and  admirable  story  telling;  but  they  were 
never  admitted  to  the  inner  sanctuary.  Lincoln's 
personal  and  spiritual  life  was  singularly  and  tragic- 
ally solitary.  Even  Herndon,  for  so  many  years 
Lincoln's  law  partner,  who  thought  he  knew  every- 
thing about  Lincoln,  was  never  admitted  to  the  Holy 
of  Holies;  his  book  on  Lincoln  sufficiently  proves 
that.  Joshua  Speed  was  the  nearest  to  an  intimate 
friend  Lincoln  had ;  perhaps  because  he  was  associated 
with  Lincoln's  later  love  affair  and  marriage. 

Mary  Todd,  a  little  woman,  of  high  Kentucky  and 
Virginia  family,  excellent  finishing  school  education, 
with  keen  social  ambitions  and  a  quick,  not  always 
controlled  temper,  was  the  sister-in-law  of  one  of  the 
leading  Springfield  citizens.  Why  did  she  turn  to 
Lincoln?     During  the  same  period  she  was  being 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  299 

courted  by  the  affable  and  socially  cultivated  Stephen 
A.  Douglas.  Was  it  that,  through  the  awkward  and 
forbidding  shell  of  the  man,  she  was  drawn  to  the  deep 
soul  within,  and  divined  something  of  his  coming 
greatness?  Why  did  Lincoln  turn  to  her?  Was  it  his 
longing  for  feminine  society,  his  sense  that  she  was 
all  that  he  was  not  in  the  way  of  social  cultivation?  In 
any  case,  they  were  engaged  to  be  married ;  and  then, 
on  New  Year's  Day  of  the  following  year,  the  en- 
gagement was  suddenly  broken,  under  quite  mysteri- 
ous circumstances.  Lincoln  was  in  great  distress  of 
mind,  not  knowing  whether  he  had  behaved  disgrace- 
fully and  forfeited  his  own  best  life,  or  whether  he 
should  be  thankful  for  his  release  from  an  impossible 
situation. 

Note  that  there  was  much  of  the  Hamlet  ten- 
dency in  Lincoln.  As  his  ideas  developed,  they  be-  HfmletaeiCementthe 
came  settled  convictions,  the  basis  of  his  life;  but  in  in  Lincoln, 
conduct  he  was  for  long  uncertain,  apt  to  respond 
to  the  nearest  counsel,  vacillating,  subject  to  alternat- 
ing moods  of  profound  depression  and  relative  self- 
confidence.  It  was  only  in  the  terrible  crucible  of 
war,  that  the  man  of  inflexible  ideas  finally  became 
the  man  of  equally  inflexible  action. 

At  this  crisis,  Speed  took  him  away  to  Kentucky. 
Speed's  mother  helped  to  nurse  him  back  to  mental 
and  moral  health.  He  returned  to  Springfield;  and 
under  almost  equally  peculiar  circumstances,  the  en- 
gagement was  renewed ;  and  in  November  of  the  year 


300  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

that  Lincoln  was  thirty-three,  he  and  Mary  Todd 
were  married. 

Lincoln  was  an  entirely  loyal  husband  to  the  end 
Lincoln  as  husband  °^  n^s  n^  e>  an(^  a  beautiful  father  to  his  children.  He 
and  father.  never  disciplined  them;  possibly  Mary  Todd  Lincoln 

may  have  done  enough  of  that  for  both ;  but  affection- 
ate tenderness  and  companionship  he  gave,  in  fullest 
measure.  When  the  little  boy,  Willie,  died,  in  the 
darkest  period  of  the  Civil  War,  it  helped  to  plunge 
Lincoln  into  one  of  those  long  periods  of  depression. 
His  wife  loved  him  with  real  and  lasting  affection. 
She  helped  him  in  various  ways.  She  tried  hard  to 
improve  his  social  etiquette,  but  with  limited  success. 
He  would  come  into  the  living  room  in  his  shirt 
sleeves,  when  fashionable  ladies  were  calling.  One 
instance  will  illustrate :  a  number  of  such  ladies  called, 
and  Lincoln  went  in  and  told  them  Mrs.  Lincoln 
would  be  down  "as  soon  as  she  got  her  trotting  har- 
ness on."  You  can  imagine  what  such  behavior  did 
to  the  socially  ambitious  Mary  Todd  Lincoln.  Under- 
stand, Lincoln  was  a  natural  gentleman,  with  that  in- 
stinctive courtesy  of  Nature's  nobleman,  especially 
toward  the  hurt  and  broken,  that  springs  from  a  ten- 
der and  kindly  heart,  but  he  never  got  on  well  in 
polite  society. 

His  wife  had  excellent  practical  judgment:   she 
saved  Lincoln  from  certain  mistakes.     For  instance, 

Effect  of  his  1  t  •         i  .  •  o  1  •      .  r^ 

domestic  life  on     when  Lincoln,  returning  from  his  term  in  Congress 
Lincoln.  with  a  sense  of  failure  and  a  mood  of  profound  de- 

pression, was  inclined  to  accept  the  offered  governor- 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  301 

ship  of  Oregon  as  the  best  way  out,  his  wife  put  her 
little  foot  down  hard  and  said,  No,  she  wouldn't  go 
to  Oregon  and  he  shouldn't  go  either;  and  so  saved 
him  for  a  national  career.  Had  he  gone  to  Oregon, 
he  would  have  been  removed  from  the  national  theater 
just  at  the  critical  time.  Mrs.  Lincoln  was  entirely 
loyal  to  her  husband's  and  the  Union's  cause,  while 
suffering  the  tragedy  of  her  own  relatives  fighting 
with  the  Confederate  forces.  It  must  be  frankly 
recognized,  nevertheless,  that  Lincoln's  married  life 
in  no  degree  answered  the  deeper  needs  of  his  heart 
and  spirit;  and  possibly  his  domestic  setting  served 
only  to  accentuate  the  brooding  solitariness  of  the  soul 
within. 

After  a  period  of  miscellaneous  practice  in  Spring- 
field, with  two  more  terms  in  the  Legislature,  Lincoln 
was  offered  a  partnership  by  Judge  Logan,  one  of  Th.e  law  partner- 
the  leaders  of  the  Illinois  Bar;  which  means  that  Logan. 
Judge  Logan  must  have  seen,  through  Lincoln's  awk- 
ward immaturity,  something  of  his  coming  greatness. 
So  Lincoln  had,  with  Judge  Logan,  several  years  of  Lincoln,s  interest 
admirable  training  in  the  Law.     His  interest,  as  we  and  training  in 

•  1  '   T  *       *  ^e    ^aW* 

have  seen,  was  m  the  Law  as  giving  the  basic  prin- 
ciples of  human  society  and  government.  He  was 
not  interested  in  legal  technicalities  and  the  tricks  for 
winning  cases.  His  colleagues  sometimes  thought 
him  lazy,  in  consequence.  He  was  not  lazy,  though 
there  was  a  certain  inertia  in  his  giant  frame  and 
brooding  spirit;  it  was  merely  that  the  petty  legal 
devices  did  not  interest  him. 


302 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Lincoln  and 
Herndon. 


Standing  for 
Congress  at  37. 


After  the  years  with  Judge  Logan,  Lincoln  left 
that  partnership,  and  formed  another,  with  Herndon 
as  junior  partner;  and  the  shingle,  Lincoln  and  Hern- 
don, was  out  in  Springfield  till  Lincoln's  death;  that 
partnership  was  never  broken. 

In  1846,  Lincoln  stood  for  Congress  as  a  "per- 
sonal" candidate.  His  opponent,  Peter  Cartwright, 
was  a  somewhat  bigoted  religionist.  During  the  cam- 
paign he  attacked  Lincoln  as  an  "aristocrat"  and  an 
"infidel."  Lincoln  answered  the  first  charge,  jocu- 
larly; it  was  easy  to  answer;  and  remained  silent  on 
the  second.  Why?  Well,  during  the  forties  of  the 
nineteenth  century  a  wave  of  liberal  thinking  had 
gone  across  the  country.  Emerson,  six  years  older 
than  Lincoln,  was  writing  his  early  books  and  giving 
his  lectures.  Lincoln  was  deeply  influenced  by  the 
movement.  He  had  read  the  religious  writings  of 
Thomas  Paine,  and  had  come  about  to  the  point  of 
view  of  Channing  and  Theodore  Parker.  While 
naturally  a  religious  man,  and  deepeningly  so  under 
the  terrible  burden  of  war,  he  was  never  able  to  ex- 
press his  faith  in  the  conventional  orthodox  forms  or 
accept  the  ordinary  creedal  statements.  Rather  than 
attempt  to  answer  his  opponent,  he  thus  remained 
silent:  a  further  illustration  of  the  absolute  moral 
integrity  that  was  Lincoln. 

In  spite  of  this  situation,  he  was  elected,  served  his 
s  resuntng  term  in  Congress,  and  made  no  impression.  True, 
depression.  the  men  liked  him,  as  always,  in  committee  rooms  and 

hotel  lobbies,   for  his  story  telling  and  good  com- 


Lincoln's  religious 
views. 


Relative  failure 
in  Congress,  and 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  303 

radeship,  but  as  a  statesman  he  was  unrecognized. 
He  voted  as  a  strict  party  man.  His  only  independ- 
ent action  was  to  propose  a  bill  for  the  elimination  of 
slavery  in  the  District  of  Columbia ;  and  it  died  pain- 
lessly in  Committee,  never  reaching  the  floor  of  the 
House.  At  forty,  Lincoln  came  home  to  Springfield, 
feeling  that  he  had  failed  completely,  wondering 
whether  he  was  fit  for  public  life  anyway,  inclined  to 
take  the  offered  governorship  of  Oregon  as  the  easiest 
way  out;  a  step  from  which,  we  have  seen,  his  wife's 
decision  saved  him. 

He  threw  himself  into  his  law  practice  with  a  new 
fervor.  There  follows  a  series  of  years  of  circuit  circurtriding. 
riding;  Lincoln  going  from  court  to  court,  in  what  is 
described  as  "a  ramshackle  buggy,  with  a  poky  old 
horse."  He  got  on  well  with  everybody,  opposing  as 
well  as  friendly  counsel;  but  where  the  other  lawyers 
went  home  for  week-ends,  Lincoln  usually  remained 
on  circuit.  There  may  have  been  partly  a  domestic 
reason  to  account  for  this;  but  mainly  it  was  due  to 
Lincoln's  feverish  desire  to  make  up  the  deficiencies 
of  his  early  schooling.     While  the  others  slept,  or  ^ 

J  °  ,  \  Struggles  to  make 

rested  at  home,  he  would  read  until  two  o'clock  in  the  up  for  meager 
morning.  At  this  time  he  mastered  Euclid.  Now  opportunities. 
what  did  Lincoln  want  with  Euclid  at  forty!  There 
is  something  pathetic  about  it  all.  Of  course,  Frank- 
lin went  through  similar  struggles ;  but  Franklin  had 
a  genial,  buoyant  temperament  Lincoln  was  without, 
and  then  Lincoln  had  nothing  of  that  personal  vanity 
which,  as  we  saw,  helped  Franklin  over  many  a  hard 


304 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Characteristics 
determining 
Lincoln's  success 
as  a  lawyer. 


place  in  the  road.  Thus  Lincoln's  double  life  went 
forward :  outwardly,  the  companionable  humorist  and 
story  teller ;  inwardly,  the  brooding  thinker  and  earn- 
est student,  sombre  and  solitary. 

Lincoln's  strength  with  a  jury  came,  first  of  all, 
from  his  profound  ethical  grasp.  He  would  fre- 
quently state  his  opponent's  case,  better  than  the  op- 
posing counsel  could  state  it;  and  then  sheer  down 
to  the  very  heart  of  the  matter,  basing  his  appeal  on 
the  fundamental  moral  principles  involved.  With 
this,  it  was  his  warm  humanity,  the  quick  turns  of 
humor  that  frequently  won  a  case,  and  his  growing 
power  of  simple,  direct,  logical  statement  that  made 
him  successful  as  a  lawyer. 

Lincoln  did  not  get  on  well  where  he  was  not  sure 
of  the  justice  of  his  cause;  indeed,  we  are  told  he 
would  refuse  criminal  cases  when  not  convinced  of  his 
client's  innocence.  He  would  even  abandon  a  case  in 
court,  upon  discovering  that  his  client  had  lied  to  him. 
One  instance  will  illustrate :  in  this  case,  the  testimony 
suddenly  revealed  that  his  client  was  guilty,  after  as- 
suring Lincoln  of  his  entire  innocence.  Without  a 
word  to  anyone,  Lincoln  turned  and  left  the  court- 
room. It  came  time  for  him  to  take  his  part  in  the 
trial;  the  judge  looked  around;  where  was  Mr.  Lin- 
coln? No  one  knew.  The  judge  sent  a  messenger 
integrity  that  was  to  the  hotel.  He  found  Lincoln  in  the  wash  room, 
mcon.  washing  his  hands.     Lincoln  sent  back  word  to  the 

judge  that  he  was  trying  to  clean  his  client's  dirt  off 
of  him;  and  he  never  went  back  into  court  with  that 


Lincoln's  behavior 
toward  lying  and 
guilty  clients. 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  305 

case ;  he  left  it  right  there.  It  was  this  moral  integrity 
that  made  everyone  trust  him:  clients,  judges,  counsel 
on  both  sides. 

Meantime  the  clouds  were  gathering  for  the  titanic 
conflict  that  had  to  come.    It  has  already  been  shown  The  gathering 
that  the  original  cleavage  of  political  philosophy,  on  Sniover  the 
the  State  versus  Nation  issue,  was  for  decades  nqtx" 
sectional,  that  it  became  sectional  as  a  result  of  the^^*^ 
differences  in  population  and  production,  North  and 
South,  and  especially  because  slavery  survived  in  the 
South,  while  dying  out  in  the  North  and  abolished 
in  the  Northwest.     Further,  it  has  been  made  clear 
that  the  fight  for  the  extension  of  slave  territory,  on 
the  part  of  the  people  of  the  South,  did  not  mean  that 
the  South  was  permanently  committed  to  the  institu- 
tion of  slavery :  that  it  was  a  struggle  for  self-preser- 
vation, to  prevent  the  South  being  completely  out- 
voted and  outweighed  in  the  national  councils. 

Besides  this,  however,  there  was,  in  the  fourth,  fifth 

and  sixth  decades  of  the  nineteenth  century,  a  curi-  mT 

.  n  .  »  i  •      i  Tne  anomaious 

ous  combination  of  vested  interests  within  the  party,  combination  of 

founded  by  Thomas  Jefferson  to  fight  such  interests,  party  founded  by 

The  great  slave  owners  were  constantly  demanding  Jefferson- 

new  territory  to  exploit  with  the  uneconomic  slave 

labor.     These  large  operators  were  financed,  not  in 

the   South,  but  from  the  moneyed  interests   of  the 

North  and  East,  especially  of  New  York.    The  party, 

within  which  these  interests  combined,  was  led  from 

Illinois  by  Stephen  A.  Douglas.     Originally  from 

Vermont,  he  had  gained  national  prominence  in  I  Hi- 


306 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Douglas,  national 
democratic  leader 
from  Illinois, 
engineering  the 
repeal  of  the 
Missouri 
Compromise, 


Lincoln's 
humorous 
statement  of  the 
reversal  of  party 
attitudes,  in  his 
letter  to  the 
Boston  Committee. 


nois  politics;  and  was  now  a  leader  of  his  party  at 
Washington,  as  Senator  from  Illinois.  Yielding  to 
the  pressure  from  within  his  party,  he  helped  to  engi- 
neer the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Compromise,  early  in 
1854,  on  the  ground  that  the  people  of  a  territory 
should  have  the  right  to  decide  for  themselves  whether 
it  should  enter  as  a  slave  or  free  state;  which  was  a 
popular  and  apparently  democratic  policy.  His 
Kansas-Nebraska  Bill  further  divided  all  the  terri- 
tory west  of  Missouri  and  north  of  36°  30',  into  two 
parts,  with  the  aim  of  making  it  easier  to  vote  the 
southern  half  slave  territory. 

There  was  thus  a  curious  reversal  of  party  positions 
toward  the  eternal  problem  of  powerful  vested  inter- 
ests. Lincoln  referred  to  this,  in  that  letter  to  the 
Boston  Committee  inviting  him  to  the  celebration  of 
Jefferson's  birthday,  from  which  has  already  been 
quoted  the  passage  on  the  Declaration  of  Independ- 
ence.   Lincoln  said: 

"Bearing  in  mind  that  about  seventy  years  ago  two 
great  political  parties  were  first  formed  in  this  country, 
that  Thomas  Jefferson  was  the  head  of  one  of  them 
and  Boston  the  headquarters  of  the  other,  it  is  both 
curious  and  interesting  that  those  supposed  to  descend 
politically  from  the  party  opposed  to  Jefferson  should 
now  be  celebrating  his  birthday  in  their  own  original 
seat  of  empire,  while  those  claiming  political  descent 
from  him  have  nearly  ceased  to  breathe  his  name  every- 
where.   *    *    * 

"I  remember  being  once  much  amused  at  seeing  two 
partially  intoxicated  men  engaged  in  a  fight  with  their 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  307 

great-coats  on,  which  fight,  after  a  long  and  rather 
harmless  contest,  ended  in  each  having  fought  himself 
out  of  his  own  coat  and  into  that  of  the  other.  If  the 
two  leading  parties  of  this  day  are  really  identical  with 
the  two  in  the  days  of  Jefferson  and  Adams,  they  have 
performed  the  same  feat  as  the  two  drunken  men."* 

In  further  application  of  Lincoln's  story,  it  may 
be  added  that  the  above  is  not  the  only  instance  of  the 
exchange  of  overcoats  by  our  political  parties.  It 
might  seem  invidious  to  cite  later  illustrations;  but  if 
you  have  a  keen  mind  and  are  interested  in  cross- 
word puzzles,  you  might  figure  out  for  yourself  who's 
wearing  whose  overcoat  now. 

Lincoln  was  a  Whig,  but  he  based  himself  wholly 
on  the  principles  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  especially  as  Lincoln's  political 
formulated  in  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  "the  j^n^on  \hllfe  of 
white  man's  charter  of  freedom."     His  ideas,  more-  Thomas  Jefferson. 

.  .  irti»as  enunciated  in 

over,  were  clarifying  and  becoming  the  steadfast  basis  the  Declaration  of 
on  which  his  life  was  to  rest.  In  his  own  family  back-  D  epen  CT 
ground,  he  knew  all  the  evils,  to  the  poor  whites,  of 
competition  with  slave  labor.  Wherever  slavery  ex- 
isted, it  was,  of  course,  degrading  to  a  free  man  to 
work  at  the  same  task  as  a  slave.  Those  whites,  there- 
fore, too  poor  to  own  slaves  or  be  trained  for  skilled 
labor,  had  to  move  out,  ever  further  on  the  frontier, 
to  escape  the  degrading  competition  with  the  labor  of 
negro  slaves.  Lincoln  had  come  to  the  settled  con- 
viction that  the  new  territories  were  needed  to  give 


*  Lincoln,   from   letter  to  the   Boston    Committee,    Springfield,   Ills., 
April  6,  1859:     Writings,  Vol.  V,  pp.  24-26, 


308 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Reasons  for 
Lincoln's  settled 
"free  soil" 
convictions. 


The  Peoria 
speech,  answering 
Douglas,  in  1854. 


The  first  half  of 
Lincoln's  life 
program. 


opportunity  for  poor  white  people  to  take  up  the 
land,  till  the  farms,  build  their  homes,  rear  their  chil- 
dren, and  by  hard  toil  develop  into  self-respecting, 
prosperous  American  citizens,  without  suffering  the 
degrading  competition  with  slave  labor,  or,  later,  the 
evil  effects  of  using  such  labor. 

In  the  campaign  of  1854,  there  were  three  candi- 
dates for  the  Senate  from  Illinois:  Douglas's  candi- 
date, representing  the  regular  Democratic  party;  the 
candidate  of  the  bolting  Democrats,  who  had  broken 
with  the  party  because  of  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri 
Compromise,  and  Lincoln.  Twice  during  the  cam- 
paign, Lincoln  publicly  answered  a  speech  by  Doug- 
las. In  his  second  reply,  at  Peoria,  Lincoln  laid  down 
the  first  half  of  his  life-program,  in  the  following 
words : 

"Whether  slavery  shall  go  into  Nebraska  or  other 
new  Territories,  is  not  a  matter  of  exclusive  concern  to 
the  people  who  may  go  there.  The  whole  nation  is  in- 
terested that  the  best  use  shall  be  made  of  these  Terri- 
tories. We  want  them  for  homes  for  free  white  people. 
*  *  *  Slave  states  are  places  for  poor  white  people  to 
remove  from,  not  remove  to.  New  Free  States  are  the 
places  for  poor  people  to  go  to  and  better  their  condi- 
tion.    For  this  use  the  nation  needs  these  Territories."* 

No  further  extension  of  slave  territory,  no  more 
new  slave  states :  this,  Lincoln  had  come  to  see  as  the 
first  element  in  the  solution  of  the  nation's  overshad- 
owing problem.    At  the  same  time,  he  insisted  on  the 


*  Lincoln,  in  speech  at  Peoria,  Illinois,  in  reply  to  Senator  Douglas, 
October  16,  1854:     Writings,  Vol.  II,  pp.  212,  213. 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  309 

enforcement  of  the  Fugitive  Slave  Law,  enacted  in 

1793,  revised  and  made  more  stringent  in  1850.   That  ^stlnce  on  the 

law  so  offended  abolition  sentiment  that  all  the  New  enforcement  of  tne 

Fugitive  Slave 

England  States  and  several  others  in  the  North  en-  Law,  in  spite  of 
acted  personal  liberty  laws,  practically  nullifying  the  numerous 
Federal  statute.    Nullification,  like  the  affirmation  of  Northern  states' 
State  sovereignty  was,  in  our  history,  not  originally 
a  sectional  matter.    Lincoln's  view  was  that,  since  the 
Fugitive  Slave  Law  was  a  national  statute,  it  must 
be  enforced.     He  was   attacked   for   standing  with 
the  slaveholders  on  that  issue,  and  with  the  Abolition- 
ists on  the  free  soil  question.    He  replied  in  the  Peoria 
speech : 

"Some  men,  mostly  Whigs,  who  condemn  the  repeal 
of  the  Missouri  Compromise,  nevertheless  hesitate  to 
go  for  its  restoration,  lest  they  be  thrown  in  company 
with  the  abolitionists.  Will  they  allow  me,  as  an  old 
Whig,  to  tell  them,  good-humoredly,  that  I  think  this 
is  very  silly?  Stand  with  anybody  that  stands  right. 
Stand  with  him  while  he  is  right,  and  part  with  him 
when  he  goes  wrong.  Stand  with  the  abolitionist  in 
restoring  the  Missouri  Compromise,  and  stand  against 
him  when  he  attempts  to  repeal  the  Fugitive  Slave  law. 
In  the  latter  case  you  stand  with  the  Southern  disunion- 
ist.  What  of  that?  You  are  still  right.  In  both  cases 
you  are  right."* 

"Stand  with   anybodj^  that  stands   right."      Any  "stand  with 
politician  who  can  say  that  and  consistently  act  upon  Itlnda  nght/' 
it  becomes  a  statesman. 


*  Lincoln,  in  speech  at  Peoria,  Illinois,  in  reply  to  Senator  Douglas, 
October  16,  1854:     Writings,  Vol.  II.  p.  221. 


310 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Kesults  of 
repealing  the 
Missouri 
Compromise, 


"Bleeding 
Kansas ! " 


The  Dred  Scott 
decision  and 
consequences 


its 


To  defeat  Douglas,  Lincoln  threw  the  election  to 
the  candidate  of  the  bolting  Democrats;  and  from 
1854,  on,  the  Illinois  battle  was  between  Lincoln  and 
Douglas. 

The  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Compromise  had  thrown 
the  whole  question  of  the  new  territories  open  again, 
and  multiplied  the  bitterness  on  both  sides.  There 
followed  the  rush  into  Kansas,  with  the  sack  of  Law- 
rence by  the  pro-slavery  party,  and  the  massacre  by 
John  Brown  and  his  associates  at  Pottawatomie: 
"Bleeding  Kansas,"  indeed  it  was!  Then  came  the 
Dred  Scott  decision.  Everyone  knows  what  that 
was;  but  not  all  realize  its  implications.  Dred  Scott 
was  a  negro  slave,  taken  by  his  master  into  free  terri- 
tory, and  into  a  free  State,  and  then  back  into  a  slave 
State.  The  slave  held  that,  inasmuch  as  he  had  been 
taken  into  territory  where  slavery  was  forbidden  by 
law  and  could  not  exist,  he  was  a  free  man;  and  the 
Missouri  Supreme  Court  decided  he  was  still  a  slave. 
There  was  an  appeal  to  the  Supreme  Court  of  the 
United  States.  Its  decision,  withheld  until  after  the 
election  of  1856,  delivered  March  6,  1857,  denied  the 
right  of  any  slave  or  descendant  of  a  slave  to  sue  in 
a  United  States  Court,  declaring  that  "A  negro  whose 
ancestors  were  imported  into  this  country  and  sold  as 
slaves  cannot  become  a  member  of  the  political  com- 
munity formed  and  brought  into  existence  by  the 
Constitution  of  the  United  States."  Besides  thus 
denying  any  rights  of  citizenship  to  freed  negroes,  the 
Court  further  gratuitously  stated  that  neither  Con- 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  311 

gress  nor  the  State  Legislatures  had  any  right  to  re- 
strict the  spread  of  slavery,  thus  making  unconstitu- 
tional the  law  forbidding  slavery  in  the  Northwest 
Territory,  the  Missouri  Compromise  and  all  similar 
enactments. 

Now  see  what  that  did:  if  one  owner  could  take  a 
slave  into  free  territory,  and  still  hold  him  a  slave, 
why  not  a  thousand  owners,  a  thousand  slaves  each? 
The  decision  seemed  to  throw  the  whole  nation  open 
to  slavery.  That  was  what  the  opponents  of  slavery 
feared,  and  the  advocates  of  it  believed.  Indeed,  one 
pro-slavery  leader  boasted  that  he  would  yet  call  the 
roll  of  his  slaves  on  Bunker  Hill:  imagine  what  that 
did  to  the  Abolitionists! 

When  it  was  proposed  to  admit  Kansas  as  a  state, 
with  a  constitution  permitting  slavery,  against  the  DOUgias>8 
wish  of  the  maioritv  of  the  inhabitants  of  Kansas,   situation  in  the 

°  m  campaign  of   1858. 

Douglas  voted  his  convictions,  against  the  measure; 
and  thus  broke  with  his  party  leaders  at  Washington. 
In  the  campaign  of  1858,  he  was  up  for  reelection  as 
senator ;  and  his  problem  was  to  hold  his  constituency 
in  Illinois,  for  if  he  lost  that,  he  was  out  completely 
politically. 

Lincoln  did  not  join  the  Republican  party  when  it 
was  formed.    He  waited  a  year  and  a  half :  he  wanted  Why  Lincoln 
to  see  whose  overcoat  it  was  going  to  wear!     When  formed  Republican 
he  became  convinced,  however,  that  it  was  wearing,   ^™&^X 
at  that  time,  the  overcoat  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  that  it  *he  Rational 

.  '  Senate, 

was  formed  to  secure  justice  for  the  common  people 
and  protect  them  against  the  combination  of  power- 


312  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

ful  interests,  then  in  the  opposing  party,   Lincoln 

joined  it,  and  accepted  its  nomination  for  the  senate 

in  1858,  against  Douglas,  the  Democratic  candidate. 

In  his  speech  at  Springfield,  accepting  the  nomina- 

Lincoin's  tion  of  the  Republican  Convention,  Lincoln  laid  down 

aresPprkigefieiPde,eCh    tne  second  na^  °f  ms  life-program  in  these  words : 

second  half  of  his  "I  believe  this  government  cannot  endure  permanently 

life  program.  half  slave  and  half  free.     I  do  not  expect  the  Union  to 

be  dissolved ;  I  do  not  expect  the  house  to  fall ;  but  I  do 
expect  that  it  will  cease  to  be  divided.  It  will  become 
all  one  thing,  or  all  the  other.  Either  the  opponents 
of  slavery  will  arrest  the  further  spread  of  it,  and  place 
it  where  the  public  mind  shall  rest  in  the  belief  that  it  is 
in  the  course  of  ultimate  extinction,  or  its  advocates 
will  push  it  forward  till  it  shall  become  alike  lawful  in 
all  the  States,  old  as  well  as  new,  North  as  well  as 
South."* 

This  speech  displeased  the  party  politicians.  They 
held  that  Lincoln  had  unnecessarily  invited  trouble 
and  damaged  his  chances  of  election.  Lincoln  replied 
that  he  was  "after  bigger  game,"  meaning,  not  that 
he  aspired  to  a  higher  office,  but  that  his  own  election 
or  defeat  was  unimportant,  compared  to  the  great 
problem  the  nation  faced  and  had  to  solve.  He  never 
took  the  abolitionist  view  of  that  problem,  recognizing 
that  the  South  had  inherited  slavery,  and  the  existing 
generation  was  in  no  degree  responsible  for  it.  He 
held,  therefore,  that  slavery  should  be  let  alone  where 


*  Lincoln,  from  the  speech  delivered  at  Springfield,  Ills.,  June  17, 
1858,  at  the  close  of  the  Republican  State  Convention  which  had  nomi- 
nated Lincoln  for  U.  S.  Senator:     Writings,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  2. 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  313 

it  was,  but  confined  within  its  existing  limits,  with 
the  hope  that  the  southern  people  would  voluntarily 
work  out  a  constructive  solution  through  gradual 
emancipation.  Such  was  the  now  clearly  defined  pro- 
gram of  settled  ideas  on  which  his  life  work  was  to 
rest. 

Early  in  the  campaign,  Lincoln  challenged  Doug- 
las to  debate  the  issues  publicly  all  over  Illinois;  and  ^Dougia?8'^6 
Douglas  somewhat  reluctantly  partly  accepted:  for  the  partial 

?  ■  J   r  n  •       1  accePtance- 

one  important  place  in  each  of  seven  Congressional 

districts  of  Illinois.  There  followed  that  great  series 
of  debates,  the  greatest  ever  held,  not  only  in  our 
country,  but  anywhere  in  the  world  at  any  time.  Lin- 
coln began  that  series  of  debates,  a  frontier  lawyer 
and  local  politician,  hardly  known  outside  central  The  t 
Illinois;  he  closed  it,  a  national  figure,  talked  of  all  Debates, 
over  the  northern  half  of  the  country  as  available  for 
the  presidency. 

The  contrast  between  the  two  men  is  impressive: 
Lincoln,  the  awkward,  six-foot-four  giant;  Douglas, 
called  "The  Little  Giant,"  short,  rotund,  polished  in 
manner.  Lincoln  usually  began  his  speeches  in  a  u^^^t*™*1 
shrill,  unpleasing  voice,  with  hands  tightly  clenched  Douglas- 
behind  his  back  or  used  in  awkward  gestures,  until  he 
forgot  himself ;  then  his  voice  would  deepen,  his  head 
would  begin  bobbing,  his  gestures  grow  forceful,  while 
with  direct,  logical  statement  and  whimsical  turns  of 
humor,  he  drove  home  his  ideas.  Douglas  was  smooth, 
ponderous,  with  a  flow  of  language  and  flights  of 
rhetoric,  able  to  cover  up  an  issue  with  a  torrent  of 


314  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

words,  when  he  desired.  Lincoln,  with  a  program  of 
deep,  inflexible  ethical  ideas;  Douglas,  rather  an  op- 
portunist, but  with  certain  tenacious  convictions.  Lin- 
coln, slow  and  deep;  Douglas,  facile  and  brilliant: 
the  one,  with  profound  faith  in  the  people;  the  other 
allied  with  wealth  and  aristocracy. 

The  contrast  extended  to  the  way  the  two  men 
JS^Jtl  t01ired  the  state-  George  B.  McClellan,  then  an 
two  ways  of  official  of  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad,  whom  Lincoln 

touring  the  State.  . 

was  afterwards  to  call  to  the  command  of  the  Union 
armies,  offered  Douglas  his  private  car;  and  in  this 
Douglas  toured  the  state  in  luxurious  fashion.  Lin- 
coln went  about  in  any  possible  way:  in  the  caboose 
of  a  freight  train,  the  smoker  of  a  local,  on  horseback, 
on  foot :  any  way  he  could  get  around.  Enthusiastic 
crowds  gathered;  families  drove  in  from  the  country- 
side, bringing  luncheon,  supper  and  breakfast,  sleep- 
ing out  all  night  on  the. ground:  it  was  a  wonderful 
series  of  debates. 

In  practically  every  debate,  Douglas  sarcastically 
?f°Lfn?oin?iSU8e  <luoted  Lincoln's  "House  divided  against  itself" 
Springfield  speech,  speech,  ridiculing  its  Scriptural  language  and  claim- 
ing that  Lincoln  wished  to  plunge  the  Nation  into  civil 
war.  Regularly  and  patiently  Lincoln  explained  that 
war  was  the  thing  he  most  of  alF  wished  to  avoid,  and 
then  reiterated  his  view  of  the  moral  issue.  In  the 
final  debate,  at  Alton,  he  summed  it  up : 

"Although  Henry  Clay  could  say  he  wished  every 
slave  in  the  United  States  was  in  the  country  of  his 
ancestors,  I  am  denounced  by  those  pretending  to  re- 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN 


315 


spect  Henry  Clay  for  uttering  a  wish  that  it  (slavery) 
might  sometime,  in  some  peaceful  way,  come  to  an  end. 
The  Democratic  policy  in  regard  to  that  institution  will 
not  tolerate  the  merest  breath,  the  slightest  hint,  of 
the  least  degree  of  wrong  about  it.  Try  it  by  some  of 
Judge  Douglas's  arguments.  *  *  *  He  contends  that 
whatever  community  wants  slaves  has  a  right  to  have 
them.  So  they  have,  if  it  is  not  a  wrong.  But  if  it  is 
a  wrong,  he  cannot  say  people  have  a  right  to  do  wrong. 
He  says  that  upon  the  score  of  equality  slaves  should 
be  allowed  to  go  in  a  new  Territory,  like  other  property. 
This  is  strictly  logical  if  there  is  no  difference  between 
it  and  other  property.  *  *  *  But  if  you  insist  that 
one  is  wrong  and  the  other  right,  there  is  no  use  to 
institute  a  comparison  between  right  and  wrong.  You 
may  turn  over  everything  in  the  Democratic  policy 
from  beginning  to  end,  whether  in  the  shape  it  takes  on 
the  statute  book,  in  the  shape  it  takes  in  the  Dred 
Scott  decision,  in  the  shape  it  takes  in  conversation, 
*  *  *  it  everywhere  carefully  excludes  the  idea  that 
there  is  anything  wrong  in  it. 

"That  is  the  real  issue.  That  is  the  issue  that  will 
continue  in  this  country  when  these  poor  tongues  of 
Judge  Douglas  and  myself  shall  be  silent.  It  is  the 
eternal  struggle  between  these  two  principles — right  and 
wrong — throughout  the  world.  They  are  the  two  prin- 
ciples that  have  stood  face  to  face  from  the  beginning 
of  time,  and  will  ever  continue  to  struggle.  The  one  is 
the  common  right  of  humanity,  and  the  other  the 
divine  right  of  kings.  It  is  the  same  principle  in  what- 
ever shape  it  develops  itself.  It  is  the  same  spirit  that 
says,  "You  work  and  toil  and  earn  bread,  and  I'll  eat 
it."  No  matter  in  what  shape  it  comes,  whether  from 
the  mouth  of  a  king  who  seeks  to  bestride  the  people 
of  his  own  nation  and  live  by  the  fruit  of  their  labor, 


Summary  of 
Lincoln's  program 
of  ideas  in  the 
closing  debate  at 
Alton. 


Lincoln's  grasp  of 
the  eternal  issue. 


Universal 
application  of  the 
ethical  issue. 


316 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Significance  of 
Lincoln's  thought 
for  the  problems 
of  our  time. 


Lincoln's   crucial 
questions. 


Douglas's 
dilemma. 


or  from  one  race  of  men  as  an  apology  for  enslaving 
another  race,  it  is  the  same  tyrannical  principle."* 

It  was  this  inflexible  grasp  of  the  fundamental 
moral  issue  that  made  Lincoln  the  great  leader;  and 
how  his  words  ring  out  in  application  to  the  same 
problem,  more  subtly  clothed  in  the  injustices  of  our 
current  society.  Chattel  slavery  is  gone;  but  "the 
eternal  struggle  between  these  two  principles — right 
and  wrong" — goes  on. 

In  the  debate  at  Freeport,  the  second  of  the  cam- 
paign, Lincoln  deliberately  imperilled  his  chance  of 
election,  by  asking  Douglas  a  number  of  questions, 
of  which  the  most  important  was  this:  "Can  the  peo- 
ple of  a  United  States  Territory,  in  any  lawful  way, 
against  the  wish  of  any  citizen  of  the  United  States, 
exclude  slavery  from  its  limits  prior  to  the  formation 
of  a  State  Constitution?"  Do  you  see  the  significance 
of  the  question?  It  concerned  the  whole  range  of  con- 
sequences of  the  Dred  Scott  decision.  It  put  Doug- 
las in  a  quandary.  If  he  answered,  "Yes,  they  can," 
he  expressed  his  conviction,  but  went  against  the 
leaders  of  his  party.  If  he  said,  "No,  they  cannot," 
he  sided  with  his  party  leaders,  but  violated  his  own 
publicly  reiterated  convictions  and  offended  his  con- 
stituency in  Illinois.  So  he  hedged,  argued  on  both 
sides,  covered  up  the  issue  with  a  torrent  of  words, 
shouted  that,  of  course,  while  the  people  have  a  police 
force,  they  can  keep  out  anyone  they  wish  to  keep  out 


*  Lincoln,  in  last  debate  with  Douglas,  Alton,  Ills.,  Oct.  15th,  1858 
Writings,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  266-268. 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  317 

can't  they?;  caught  the  fancy  of  the  crowd;   was 

elected;  but  Lincoln  had  split  his  party  and  practi-  ^g^c^d' 

cally  destroyed  his  national  leadership,  thus  proving  measure  of  victory 
,.,„         J  -,..,  .  for  his  cause- 

himseli  a  great  political  strategist. 

Had  Lincoln  possessed  that  strategy,  without  his 
inflexible  moral  convictions,  he  would  have  been  a 
scheming  politician;  with  those  profound  convictions, 
his  skill  in  political  strategy  made  him  a  great  and 
successful  statesman. 

Following  the  election,  Lincoln  went  into  one  of 
those  long  periods  of  depression,  to  which  he  was  re- 
curringly  subiect.     He  had  earnestly  desired  to  be   The  year  of 

°  J  °  J  m  depression. 

elected ;  and  was,  indeed,  strongly  ambitious  for  place 
and  political  recognition.  His  sacrifice  of  the  election 
had  been  for  duty's  sake,  in  the  interest  of  his  cause. 
The  period  of  depression  lasted  well  into  1859.  It 
was  not  until  near  the  close  of  that  year  that  he  began 
to  take  seriously  the  widespread  movement  for  nomi- 
nating him  for  the  presidency. 

In  the  winter,  a  literary  club  of  young  men,  in  Ply- 
mouth Church,  Brooklyn,  wrote  Lincoln,  asking  if  The  invitation 
he  would  not  come  on  and  give  a  lecture  in  Plymouth  Brooklyn!  m 
Church,  offering  him  the  then  large  fee  of  two  hun- 
dred dollars.  Lincoln  had  been  neglecting  his  law 
practice,  spending  much  of  his  time  in  unpaid  political 
service.  He  needed  the  money:  others  have  since, 
even  vice  presidents,  we  are  told ;  so  he  accepted. 

He  evidently  prepared  with  extreme  care  a  lecture 
giving  the  complete  historical  data  regarding  the 
views  of  the  signers  of  the  Constitution,  on  the  power 


318 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Lincoln's  careful 
preparation  for  his 
Brooklyn  lecture. 


The  embarrassing 
change  of  plan. 


Attitude  of  the 
East  toward 
Lincoln. 


and  authority  of  Congress  to  prohibit  slavery  in  the 
national  territories.  He  had  done  this  work  so  thor- 
oughly that  no  unfriendly  critic  was  able  afterwards 
to  find  any  misstatement  of  historical  fact.  It  is  quite 
possible  that  if  the  Brooklyn  lecture  had  been  given 
as  originally  planned,  it  would  have  been  limited  to 
the  historical  argument  and  its  application;  thus  giv- 
ing the  authority  for  his  stand  in  the  debates  with 
Douglas,  and  justifying  his  view  that  the  Dred  Scott 
decision  was  unconstitutional,  and  that  slavery  could 
and  should  be  restricted  to  its  existing  limits. 

When  he  reached  New  York,  however,  he  found 
the  situation  entirely  changed  from  the  original  plan: 
instead  of  speaking  in  Plymouth  Church,  Brooklyn, 
under  the  auspices  of  a  literary  club,  he  was  to  address 
a  metropolitan  audience,  composed  largely  of  states- 
men and  politicians,  in  the  great  hall  of  Cooper 
Union,  New  York.  The  point  is,  the  East  was  pro- 
foundly curious  to  see  and  hear  Lincoln.  Everybody 
had  read  the  debates  with  Douglas ;  Lincoln  had  been 
caricatured  in  the  opposition  press  all  over  the  coun- 
try: the  favorite  later  cartoon  representing  him  as  a 
great,  gaunt  gorilla,  with  hideous,  ape-like  face,  and 
long,  hairy  arms.  The  East  wanted  to  see  what  kind 
of  man  this  backwoods  lawyer,  who  had  suddenly 
sprung  into  national  prominence,  was  anyway. 

Lincoln  was  greatly  disturbed  by  the  change  of 
plan.  He  isolated  himself  in  his  hotel  room  on  lower 
Broadway,  tried  to  whip  his  address  into  shape  for 
the  altered  occasion.    The  meeting  came  the  evening 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  319 

of  February  27th,  I860.  It  was  a  great  gathering. 
William  Cullen  Bryant  presided;  Horace  Greeley  S^Coop- 
and  Dudley  Field  escorted  Lincoln  to  the  platform;  Union  address- 
nearly  every  important  statesman  from  the  neigh- 
borhood was  in  the  audience.  It  was  a  tolerantly  re- 
spectful audience:  they  wished  to  hear  what  he  could 
say  for  himself.  Lincoln,  much  embarrassed,  began, 
as  usual,  with  unpleasing  voice  and  awkward  ges- 
tures; then  soon  forgot  himself  and  gave  a  great 
speech.  There  was  none  of  the  buffoonery  many  had 
been  led  to  expect;  there  was  even  nothing  of  the 
quaint  and  sparkling  humor,  characteristic  of  his  less 
formal  campaign  speeches.  He  must  have  seemed 
puzzlingly  sombre,  in  his  commanding  native  dignity, 
to  his  distinguished  audience,  once  his  awkwardness 
was  forgotten. 

He  gave  in  full  his  sedulously  prepared  historical 

.  ",  Argument  of  the 

argument  on  the  views  and  purpose  of  the  fathers" :  Cooper  Union 
it  reads  a  little  dry,  without  the  vivid  intensity  of  the  Spee°  ' 
speaker's  personality  and  the  tension  of  absorbed  in- 
terest when  the  great  conflict  was  on.  He  spoke  gen- 
erously conciliatory  words  to  the  Southern  people.  He 
deprecated  the  John  Brown  raid,  denying  any  con- 
nection with  it  or  sanction  of  it  on  the  part  of  the  Re- 
publican party  and  its  members,  saying: 

"That  affair,  in  its  philosophy,  corresponds  with  the 

many  attempts,  related  in  history,  at  the  assassination 

of  kings  and  emperors.     An  enthusiast  broods  over  the        Yiew  of  *Ke  John 

u  i      ,  -n    ^       o        •  .  /.  .  Brown  raid, 

oppression  or  a  people  till  he  fancies  himself  commis- 


320  AMERICAN  STATESMEN 

sioned  by  Heaven  to  liberate  them.  He  ventures  the  at- 
tempt, which  ends  in  little  else  than  his  own  execution."* 

Then,  in  the  concluding  paragraphs  of  the  address, 
he  sheered  down  to  those  now  clear  and  changeless 
convictions,  that  made  him  the  Lincoln  he  was  and 
whom  we  reverence.  He  described  the  conflict  as 
fundamentally  between  those  "holding  that  slavery 
is  morally  right  and  socially  elevating"  and  those 
"thinking  it  wrong."  With  all  his  temperate  concilia- 
tion, he  never  wavered  from  the  conviction  that 
slavery  was  eternally  wrong,  and  therefore  must  be 
confined  to  its  existing  area,  with  a  reasonable  hope 
of  its  ultimate  extinction.  He  closed  with  these 
characteristic  ringing  words: 

Conclusion  of  the  "Wrong  as  we  think  slavery  is,  we  can  yet  afford  to 

speech  that  made         \ei  ft  alone  where  it  is,  because  that  much  is  due  to  the 
Lincoln  President.  .  .  . 

necessity  arising  from  its  actual  presence  in  the  nation ; 

but  can  we,  while  our  votes  will  prevent  it,  allow  it  to 
spread  into  the  national  Territories,  and  to  overrun  us 
here  in  these  free  States?  If  our  sense  of  duty  forbids 
this,  then  let  us  stand  by  our  duty,  fearlessly  and  ef- 
fectively. Let  us  be  diverted  by  none  of  those  sophisti- 
cal contrivances  wherewith  we  are  so  industriously  plied 
and  belabored — contrivances  such  as  groping  for  some 
middle  ground  between  the  right  and  the  wrong,  vain 
as  the  search  for  a  man  who  should  be  neither  a  living 
man  nor  a  dead  man.    *    *    * 

"Let  us  have  faith  that  Right  makes  Might,  and  in 


*  Lincoln,    in    speech   at   Cooper   Union,   New   York,    Feb.    27,    1860: 
Writings,  Vol.  V,  p.  142. 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  321 

that  faith  let  us,  to  the  end,  dare  to  do  our  duty  as  me 
understand  it."* 

That  speech  put  Lincoln  in  the  White  House* 
There  is  an  interesting  story  connected  with  it.  Lin- 
coln left  the  hall  depressed,  as  usual  not  knowing 
whether  he  had  done  well  or  not.  A  New  York  states- 
man happened  to  walk  out  beside  Lincoln.  They 
crossed  to  Broadway;  it  began  to  rain;  and  they  got 
into  a  street  car,  going  down  towards  Lincoln's  hotel. 
When  the  car  reached  the  corner  of  the  street  on  which 
the  statesman  lived,  he  got  out  and  went  home.  When 
he  sat  down  at  home,  he  says  that  he  could  not  help 
thinking  of  Lincoln's  face:  he  thought  he  had  never 
seen  so  lonely  and  sorrowful  a  face  in  all  his  life ;  and 
he  wished  he  had  gone  on  to  Lincoln's  hotel  with  him. 
It  is  worth  remembering  that,  after  the  speech  that 
put  Lincoln  in  the  White  House,  he  was  allowed  to  go 
back  to  his  lower  Broadway  hotel  room  alone. 

Lincoln  made  a  few  speeches  in  New  England, 
and  went  home  to  Springfield.  When  the  Bepubli-  nominated. 
can  party  Convention  was  held  in  Chicago,  in  June, 
the  fight  between  Seward  and  Greely  threw  the 
nomination  to  Lincoln  on  the  third  ballot.  When  the 
election  came  in  the  autumn  there  were  four  candi- 
dates: Breckenridge,  representing  the  extreme  pro- 
slavery  group;  Douglas,  standing  for  those  who  The  election 
wished  to  put  the  slavery  issue  aside,  indifferent 
whether  it  was  "voted  up  or  down" ;  Bell  of  Tennes- 


*  Lincoln,  from  his  speech  at  Cooper  Union,  New  York,  Feb.  27,  1860 
Writings,  Vol.  V,  p.  149. 


322 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Significance  that 
Lincoln  #was 
elected  by  a 
distinct  minority 
of  the  popular 
vote. 


Significance  in  the 
fact  that  the  pro- 
slavery  candidate 
did  not  receive 
the  majority  vote 
of  the  slave 
States. 


The  immediate 
consequences   of 
Lincoln's 
election. 


President 
Buchanan  as 
"giving  away  the 
case." 


see,  the  candidate  of  all  who  would  not  join  the  Re- 
publicans because  of  the  Abolitionists,  but  who  feared 
Douglas  and  slavery;  and  Lincoln. 

Four  and  a  half  million  votes  were  cast  in  the  elec- 
tion. Lincoln  received  less  than  two  million,  but  was 
elected.  Please  note  that  Lincoln  was  one  of  our  sev- 
eral presidents  who  have  been  elected  by  a  minority 
of  the  popular  vote:  that  has  much  to  do  with  what 
followed.  The  most  important  fact  of  the  election, 
however,  was  that  Breckenridge,  the  frank  pro-slavery 
candidate,  did  not  receive  a  majority  of  the  vote  in 
the  slave  states;  which  proves  the  contention  that  the 
demand  for  the  extension  of  slave  territory  did  not 
mean  that  the  South  was  permanently  committed  to 
the  institution  of  slavery.  Seward  and  other  leaders 
thought  the  trouble  was  now  over;  but  bitterness  and 
hate  had  increased  on  both  sides,  blinding  men's  eyes. 
The  South  took  the  election  of  a  Republican  Presi- 
dent as  a  direct  challenge;  and,  as  we  have  seen,  four 
days  after  the  election,  the  South  Carolina  senators 
resigned  and  went  home ;  and  six  weeks  after  the  elec- 
tion, months  before  Lincoln  took  office  as  President, 
South  Carolina  seceded  from  the  Union.  President 
Buchanan,  a  good  man,  did  nothing  to  restrain  South 
Carolina,  and  sent  in  a  weak  and  frightened  mes- 
sage to  Congress.  Back  home  in  Springfield,  Lin- 
coln said  to  his  law  partner,  Herndon,  "Billy,  you 
know  you  sometimes  have  a  case  in  court,  and  before 
you  get  there,  your  fellow  lawyer  goes  into  court  and 
gives  away  the  case.     Well,  President  Buchanan  is 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  323 

giving  away  the  case";  and  he  was.    In  consequence, 

by  February,  1861,  Mississippi,  Florida,  Alabama,  Itafefancf  SeVen 

Georgia,  Louisiana,  and,  shortly  afterwards,  Texas  gJShenT  of  the 

followed  the  example  of  South  Carolina ;  and  the  rep-  Confederacy, 

x  x        the  month  before 

resentatives  of  these  seceding  states  met  at  Mont-   Lincoln's 
gomery,  Alabama;  and  on  February  9th,  weeks  be-  m    g 
fore  Lincoln's  inauguration,  established  the  Southern 
Confederacy. 

Lincoln  thus  came  to  Washington  to  be  inaugu- 
rated President,  with  the  Southern  Confederacy  an   The  situation 
accomplished  fact,  already  formed  and  functioning.   Lincoin  faced 

*  J  °      on  becoming 

His  Inaugural  Address  had  been  awaited  with  fever-   President. 

ish  interest.     It  was  temperate  but  frank.     Certain 

expressions  had  been  softened  to  please  Seward ;  and 

Seward  feeling  the  Address  ended  too  bluntly,  had 

written  a  sounding  imaginative  paragraph.    Lincoln,   thTlnaugurai  m 

realizing  its  value,  translated  it  into  his  own  simple  Address- 

diction,  and  used  it  as  the  concluding  paragraph  of  his 

Address.     He  was  generous  and  conciliatory  toward 

the  South;  but  he  stated  firmly  that  the  Union  of 

States  was  perpetual  and  must  be  preserved,  and  that   conciliatory 

the  Federal  posts  in  seceding  states  would  be  held.   Add^ss*1 

That,  of  course,  was  the  initial  question ;  and  the  storm 

centered  on  Fort  Sumter.    That  post  being  in  South 

Carolina  waters,   and   South   Carolina  having   first 

seceded,  the  State  authorities  demanded  that  the  Fed-  Reasons  why 

.  .    ,  .  .  Fort   Sumter 

eral  government  withdraw  its  garrison  and  turn  the  was  the  storm 
fort  over  to  them.    Now  see  what  that  involved :  if  the 
Federal  government  acceded,  it  was  practically  sane- 


324 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Seward  and 
Lincoln. 


Seward's 
"Thoughts  for 
the   President's 
Consideration." 


tioning  secession,  saying,  "Go,  you  have  our  bless- 
ing"; if  it  refused,  it  meant  war. 

Lincoln  was  not  yet  certain  in  action;  but  Seward 
was.  Seward  was  sure  he  should  have  been  presi- 
dent; and  a  large  part  of  the  Republican  party 
thought  so  too.  Seward  regarded  Lincoln,  with  his 
social  handicaps,  awkward  behavior  and  vacillating 
action,  as  a  mere  figurehead  anyway;  and  considered 
himself,  as  Secretary  of  State,  the  real  head  of  the 
administration.  He  was  audacious,  where  Lincoln 
was  slow  and  cautious,  brilliant  where  Lincoln  was 
deep,  rather  a  cynical  opportunist  in  politics,  in  con- 
trast to  Lincoln's  inflexible  convictions.  Thus  Lin- 
coln learned  from  Seward;  and  afterwards  Seward 
learned  from  Lincoln. 

Not  yet  sure  of  himself,  Lincoln  ordered  an  ex- 
pedition fitted  out  for  the  relief  of  Fort  Sumter,  but 
ordered  it  not  to  sail.  On  April  1st  (note  the  sig- 
nificant date)  Seward  handed  Lincoln  a  paper,  headed 
"Some  Thoughts  for  the  President's  Consideration" 
Lincoln  never  told:  he  put  the  paper  away  in  his 
desk,  and  not  until  twenty-five  years  later,  when  his 
secretaries  issued  their  great  Life  of  him,  did  the  pub- 
lic know  what  had  happened.  In  that  remarkable 
document,  Seward  somewhat  impertinently  declared 
that  the  Administration  was  still  without  a  policy. 
For  a  domestic  policy,  he  would  change  the  question 
before  the  public  from  Slavery  to  Union  or  Disunion ; 
and  to  that  end  terminate  the  Fort  Sumter  incident, 
but  hold  the  other  Federal  posts  in  the  South. 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  325 

For  foreign  nations,  he  would  demand  explana- 
tions from  Spain  and  France,  and  if  satisfactory  ones 

.  „  Seward's  plan 

were  not  received,  would  convene  Congress  and  de-   for  a  foreign 

i  'iii  tt  i  i    i?      j.1  i  war   to   reunite 

clare  war  against  them.     He  would  further  seek  ex-   the  nation. 
planations  from  Britain  and  Russia,  sending  agents 
into  all  American  countries  to  arouse  a  vigorous  spirit 
of  independence  against  European  intervention. 

The  policy  adopted  must  be  energetically  pursued 
and  incessantly  directed,  either  by  the  President  or 
some  member  of  the  Cabinet.  Seward  closed  the 
amazing  document  with  the  words,  "I  neither  seek  to 
evade  nor  assume  responsibility."  * 

Seward  was,  of  course,  right  on  what  was  the  funda- 
mental domestic  issue,  which  Lincoln  already  recog- 
nized, as  evidenced  in  his  Inaugural  Address;  but 
note  the  cynicism  of  the  proposed  foreign  policy! 
Seward  deliberately  schemed  to  bring  on  a  foreign 
war,  which  would  rouse  the  spirit  of  national  patriot- 
ism in  all  the  States,  make  people  everywhere  forget 
the  domestic  issues,  and  bring  the  seceding  States 
quickly  back  into  the  Union.  He  anticipated  that  the 
uncertain  Lincoln  would  turn  the  conduct  of  the  war 
over  to  the  assured  Seward;  he  would  carry  the  coun- 
try through  brilliantly,  and  be  the  great  man  of 
America. 

He  was,  obviously,  astute  in  recognizing  that  noth- 
ing else  temporarily  so  unites  a  nation  as  a  foreign 
war.  Any  people  will  fight,  under  any  government, 
as  long  as  there  are  foreign  invaders  on  the  soil:  that 

*  Nicolay  and  Hay,  Abraham  Lincoln,  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  445,  446. 


326 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Lincoln's  answer 
to  the 
"Thoughts." 


The   Powhatan 
affair. 


is  what  gave  the  Bolshevist  regime  its  initial  strong 
hold  upon  Russia.  How  cynical  a  scheme,  however, 
and  how  costly  a  price  to  pay  for  clouding  and  post- 
poning, instead  of  solving  domestic  problems ! 

Lincoln,  the  same  day,  wrote  a  brief,  dignified  reply 
to  Seward,  with  no  trace  of  personal  resentment  in  it, 
quietly  re-stating  his  policy  and  affirming  that  he 
would  carry  it  out,  with  the  advice  of  his  Cabinet.  He 
then  put  Seward's  paper  away,  telling  no  one  of  the 
incident.  Seward,  however,  still  believing  Lincoln 
would  agree,  sent  in  some  orders  for  the  President's 
signature.  Lincoln  signed  them  without  reading 
them.  That  was  bad,  but  that  was  Lincoln :  careless  in 
business  details.  A  little  later,  Welles,  Secretary  of 
the  Navy,  came  into  the  office  in  intense  indignation: 
"Look  what  you  signed":  an  order  giving  the  Pow- 
hatan, the  only  powerful  warship  in  the  expedition 
to  relieve  Fort  Sumter,  over  to  the  Commander  of  the 
Fort  Pickens,  Florida,  expedition.  Lincoln  acknowl- 
edged signing  it,  but  said  he  had  not  read  it;  and  he 
gave  Welles  instructions  to  recall  the  ship.  At  a 
later  meeting  Seward  was  called  in.  He  argued  for 
his  policy  that  Fort  Sumter  should  be  given  up,  but  the 
other  posts,  about  which  there  was  no  immediate  con- 
troversy, should  be  held.  Lincoln  said  "No" ;  Seward 
fumed;  Lincoln  was  inflexible,  and  ordered  Seward 
to  recall  the  ship,  and  told  Welles  to  order  the  Fort 
Sumter  expedition  to  sail.  Seward  left  the  office  in 
a  huff;  and  wrote  a  telegram  to  the  Commander  of 
the  Fort  Pickens  expedition  reading,  "Give  up  the 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  327 

Powhatan";  and  signed  it  "Seward."     The  recipient 
had  thus  two  orders  in  his  hands:  a  prior  one  signed 
by  the  President,  giving  him  the  ship,  a  later  one 
signed  by  the   Secretary  of   State,  taking  it  away. 
Well,  he  wanted  the  ship  and  argued,  "I  will  obey 
the  President,"  which  was  right;  and  sailed  away.   The  war  begun. 
April  12th,  Fort  Sumter  was  fired  upon.    April  13th, 
the  expedition  for  its  relief  arrived,  without  the  only 
warship  strong  enough  to  pass  the  South  Carolina 
batteries:   Port   Sumter  fell.     April   15th,   Lincoln 
called  for  75,000  volunteers.    Virginia,  purely  on  the 
State  versus  Nation  issue,  seceded ;  followed  by  North  addition*  l 
Carolina,    Tennessee    and    Arkansas.      These    four  seceding  states. 
joined  the  other  seven  States  in  the  Southern  Confed- 
eracy; and  the  war  was  on. 

Lincoln's  ideas,  meantime,  were  clarifying;  and  on 
July  4th,  he  sent  in  a  great  message  to  Congress,  de- 
fining the  purpose  of  the  war.     There  was  not   a 

d.,  i  .I  .  m        Lincoln's  great 

in  it  on  slavery:  the  war  was  to  preserve  the  message  of  July 

Union.    Lincoln  had  come  to  see  the  Government  of  defining61the 

the  United  States  as  the  translation  into  a  vital  organ-   purpose  of 

ism,  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence  as  written 

by  Thomas  Jefferson.     He  saw  that  Government  as 

the  hope  of  the  liberal  party  throughout  the  world, 

and  the  attempt  to  destroy  it  as  anarchy,  which,  if 

successful,  would  defeat  the  progress   of  mankind. 

He  said: 

"This   issue  embraces   more   than  the   fate   of   these 
United  States.     It  presents  to  the  whole  family  of  man        of^he^ssue^ 
the  question  whether  a  constitutional  republic  or  democ- 


328 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Bull  Run  and  its 
consequences. 


Enmity    and 
obstruction  to 
Lincoln  in  his 
own  party. 


racy — a  government  of  the  people  by  the  same  people — 
can  or  cannot  maintain  its  territorial  integrity  against 
its  own  domestic  foes."* 

The  message  fell  cold  upon  Congress;  but  Lincoln, 
yielding  to  the  pressure  of  the  politicians  and  the 
people,  against  the  opinion  of  the  military  leaders, 
ordered  McDowell  to  strike  at  Manassas  Junction; 
and  Bull  Run  followed  on  July  21st.  This  disaster 
sobered  the  nation;  it  even  sobered  Congress,  which 
passed  the  Crittenden  Resolution,  accepting  Lincoln's 
view  of  the  war. 

It  was  long  before  Lincoln  came,  in  action,  out 
from  under  the  cloud;  and,  meantime,  his  worst  ene- 
mies were  those  of  his  own  household.  First,  there 
were  members  of  his  own  party  in  Congress,  led  by 
Trumbull,  Chandler  and  Wade.  They  regarded  Lin- 
coln as  a  weakling,  anyway,  and  unfit  for  his  job. 
Strong  in  sectional  hatred,  they  viewed  the  war  as  a 
war  of  the  Republican  party  (others  have  made  the 
same  mistake  since!)  to  be  fought  through  for  the 
glory  of  the  Republican  party;  and  bitterly  resented 
Lincoln's  ceaseless  efforts  to  unite  the  whole  country 
behind  the  war.  They  formed  investigating  commit- 
tees, the  favorite  device  of  the  legislative  body  to  em- 
barrass the  executive,  and  embarrassed  and  ham- 
pered Lincoln  at  every  turn. 

Then,  as  has  been  shown,  the  Abolitionists  were 
largely  pacifists  during  the  early  period  of  the  war. 


*  Lincoln,  in 
p.  323. 


Message  to  Congress,  July  4,  1861:      Writings,  Vol.  V, 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN 


329 


They  were  willing  to  fight  a  war  to  eliminate  slavery ; 
but  Lincoln  told  them  that  was  not  this  war;  it  was 
to  preserve  the  Union.  He  further  offended  them  by 
holding  to  the  enforcement  of  the  Fugitive  Slave  Law 
for  border  states  remaining  in  the  Union.  When 
General  Fremont  issued  his  proclamation  at  St.  Louis, 
freeing  slaves  of  all  who  had  taken  active  part  against 
the  United  States,  and  setting  up  a  "Bureau  of  Aboli- 
tion," Lincoln  wrote,  warning  him.  Fremont,  shar- 
ing the  contemptuous  opinion  of  Lincoln,  paid  no  at- 
tention; and  Lincoln  abolished  his  Bureau.  The 
Abolitionists,  unable  to  see  anything  but  their  one 
issue,  were  intensely  indignant.  So  prominent  a 
leader  as  Wendell  Phillips  went  about  publicly  at- 
tacking Lincoln. 

It  is  hard  for  us  today  to  understand  how  such  at- 
tacks were  possible  from  those  who  should  have  been 
the  President's  most  loyal  supporters.  After  passion- 
ately advocating,  in  the  winter  of  1861,  "disunion," 
license  to  the  seceding  States  to  go  and  take  the 
Border  States  and  the  National  Capital  with  them, 
Wendell  Phillips,  said,  in  his  speech  on  The  Cabinet, 
so  late  as  August  1st,  1862: 

"I  believe  Mr.  Lincoln  is  conducting  this  war,  at 
present,  with  the  purpose  of  saving  slavery.  *  *  *  If 
Mr.  Lincoln  believed  in  the  North  and  in  Liberty,  he 
would  let  our  army  act  on  the  principles  of  Liberty. 
He  does  not. 

»!*  V  *(p  vf:  9jr 

"I  do  not  say  that  McClellan  is  a  traitor,  but  I  say 
this,  that  if  he  had  been  a  traitor  from  the  crown  of 


Why  many 
Abolitionists 
were  pacifists 
the  first  year 
of  the  war. 


Lincoln's 
measures 
which   incensed 
the  Abolitionists. 


Wendell 

Phillips's   bitter 
attack  on  the 
President, 
expressing  the 
view  of  many 
Abolitionists. 


330 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Paradox  in 
these   attacks, 
when  the 
Emancipation 
Proclamation 
was    already 
planned. 


Douglas's 
attitude. 


his  head  to  the  sole  of  his  foot,  he  could  not  have  served 
the  South  better  than  he  has  done  since  he  was  Com- 
mander-in-Chief. *  *  *  And  almost  the  same  thing  may 
be  said  of  Mr.  Lincoln — that  if  he  had  been  a  traitor,  he 
could  not  have  worked  better  to  strengthen  one  side,  and 
hazard  the  success  of  the  other. 

iii  iii  ate  ate  :3a. 

*T?  Vf*  ™  ^r*  * 

"The  President,  judged  by  both  proclamations  that 
have  followed  the  late  confiscation  Act  of  Congress,  has 
no  mind  whatever."* 

When  these  venomous  words  were  spoken,  Lincoln 
had  already  proposed  the  Emancipation  Proclama- 
tion to  his  Cabinet ;  and  was  waiting  only  for  a  Union 
victory  to  issue  it.  As  late  as  January  21st,  1863,  in 
his  address  on  The  State  of  the  Country,  Phillips 
could  say : 

"Your  President  sat  in  Washington,  doubtful  what 
he  ought  to  do,  how  far  he  might  go.  Month  after 
month,  stumbling,  faithless,  uncertain,  he  ventured  now 
a  little  step,  and  now  another."f 

With  this  attitude  on  the  part  of  those  the  Presi- 
dent might  naturally  have  expected  to  be  his  friends, 
there  was  ceaseless  harassment,  from  the  opposing 
political  party.  Strong  Democratic  leaders,  such  as 
Douglas,  had  rallied  to  the  war.  Douglas  came  to 
see  Lincoln,  and  asked  whether  he  could  serve  better 
at  Washington  or  in  Illinois.  Lincoln  replied,  "Illi- 
nois."    So  Douglas  went  home,  and  made  a  flaming 


*  Phillips,  Wendell,  in  speech  on  The  Cabinet,  Aug.  1st,  1862: 
Speeches,  Lectures  and  Letters,  Series  I,  pp.  448-454. 

t  Phillips,  Wendell,  in  speech  on  The  State  of  the  Country.-  Speeches, 
Lectures  and  Letters,  Series  I,  p.  529. 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  331 

war   speech  before   the  Legislature  at    Springfield, 

April  25th,  1861.     It  is  a  pity  he  died  a  little  time 

later,  June  3rd,  1861 :    he  would  have  been  a  great 

asset  to  Lincoln  had  he  lived.    The  Democratic  party  conduct  of  the 

was  thus  left  to  the  leadership  of  lesser  men,  who  llvr°*ing  Political 

temporized,   equivocated,   and   thwarted   Lincoln  in 

many  ways. 

Finally,  a  new  constitutional  question  had  arisen. 
Our  Constitution  is  very  specific  in  prescribing  powers 
and  functions;  but  allows  a  wide  latitude  of  war 
powers,  without   specifically   assigning  them.      The  The  new 

ii*/-,  i  ii'iT.        Constitutional 

leaders  in  Congress  argued:  we  are  a  people  ruled  by  question  and 
law;  Congress  is  the  Supreme  legislative  body;  the  ofinftolns  solutlon 
Constitution  intends  that  Congress  should  exercise 
the  war  powers.  Lincoln  held  rightly:  all  the  war 
powers  are  executive  functions;  the  President  is  the 
supreme  executive,  responsible  to  the  people  of  the 
nation;  the  Constitution  means  that  the  President 
shall  exercise  the  war  powers.  He  solved  the  con- 
troversy by  assuming  the  war  powers  and  exercising 
them,  while  attacks  multiplied  and  the  cabal  in  Con- 
gress howled  against  him.  That  Woodrow  Wilson 
could  exercise  those  powers  in  the  World  War  was 
due  to  the  fact  that  Lincoln  took  them  over  and 
fought  the  issue  through. 

Under  the  shock  of  the  war,  Lincoln  was  wakened 
to  recognize  that  the  same  eternal  issue,  he  had  char- 
acterized in  his  debates  with  Douglas,  applied  to  the 
relation  of  social  groups  in  economic  production.  It 
is  typical  of  his  mind  that  he  saw  the  universality  of 


332 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Application   of 
Lincoln's 
fundamental 
ideas  to  the 
labor  problem. 


Emergence  of 
the  final 
Lincoln. 


the  problem,  and  gropingly  stated  it  in  his  Message 
to  Congress  in  1861 : 

"Labor  is  prior  to  and  independent  of  capital.  Cap- 
ital is  only  the  fruit  of  labor,  and  could  never  have  ex- 
isted if  labor  had  not  first  existed.  Labor  is  the  supe- 
rior of  capital,  and  deserves  much  the  higher  considera- 
tion. Capital  has  its  rights,  which  are  as  worthy  of 
protection  as  any  other  rights.  *  *  *  There  is  not 
of  necessity  any  such  thing  as  the  free  hired  laborer 
being  fixed  to  that  condition  for  life.  Many  independ- 
ent men  everywhere  in  these  States  a  few  years  back 
in  their  lives  were  hired  laborers.  *  *  *  No  men  living 
are  more  worthy  to  be  trusted  than  those  who  toil  up 
from  poverty.  *  *  *  The  struggle  of  today  is  not 
altogether  for  today ;  it  is  for  a  vast  future  also."* 

The  passage  is  only  another  expression  of  Lin- 
coln's changeless  conviction  that  the  struggle  to  save 
the  LTnion  was  the  battle  for  the  future  of  mankind. 

The  winter  of  1861  and  62  and  the  spring  of  1862 
were  a  period  of  low  tide  for  Lincoln.  He  allowed 
wheels  within  wheels  of  war  councils,  partly  accept- 
ing, partly  rejecting  their  decisions.  He  neither  fully 
supported  McClellan  nor  definitely  overruled  him. 
Gradually,  however,  Lincoln  emerged,  and  by  the 
summer  of  1862,  the  inner  and  outer  Lincoln  had  be- 
come one;  the  man  of  inflexible  ideas  had  become  the 
man  of  equally  inflexible  action ;  Hamlet,  at  last,  was 
Prospero.  There  were  no  more  war  councils :  Lincoln 
issued  an  order,  creating  a  new  army  for  the  protec- 


*  Lincoln  in  Annual  Message  to  Congress,  Dec.  3rd,  1861 :     Writings, 
Vol.  V,  pp.  407-409. 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  333 

tion  of  Washington,  placing  Pope  at  its  head;  and  a 
few  weeks  later,  called  Halleck  to  Washington,  to 
the  supreme  command. 

These  appointments,  too,  were  partly  mistakes. 
Lincoln  did  not  have  that  absolute  judgment  of  men  Lincoln's 
that  marked  Washington,  perhaps  because  he  was  so  ofdmmnnt 
much  more  introspective,  tending  to  estimate  them  by 
what  he  knew  within  himself;  and  of  course,  they  did 
not  rise  to  that.  In  estimating  this  aspect  of  Lincoln, 
however,  and  judging  these  generals,  one  must  re- 
member that  he  was  sending  them  out  against  the 
greatest  military  captain  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race, 
who  broke  more  military  reputations  than  any  other 
leader  in  history,  except  Napoleon,  Robert  E.  Lee. 

With  slavery  subordinated  in  Lincoln's  mind  to 
the  problem  of  saving  the  Union,  he  was,  nevertheless, 
watching  for  opportunities  to  further  the  gradual  ex- 
tinction of  the  institution,  according  to  his  long  cher- 
ished hope.  He  repeatedly  urged  upon  Congress  and 
the  border  States  plans  for  emancipation  of  the  slaves, 
with  generous  Federal  compensation;  but  there  was 
little  response. 

Meantime,  as  the  months  went  by,  Lincoln  became 
increasingly  impressed  that  he  must  take  some  de-  Emancipation^ 
cisive  step  to  unite  the  whole  country  behind  the  war.  Proclamation. 
On  July  22nd,  1862,  he  quietly  announced,  at  a  Cab- 
inet meeting,  his  intention  to  issue  the  Emancipation 
Proclamation.  The  members  of  the  Cabinet  were  sur- 
prised, but  favorable.  Seward  suggested,  however, 
that  the  time  was  not  right,  that  they  should  wait  for  a 


334 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Lincoln's  open 
letter  in  answer 
to  the  attack 
of  Horace 
Greeley. 


Union  victory.  Lincoln  agreed  with  this,  and  put 
the  paper  away  in  his  desk.  In  the  interim,  Horace 
Greeley  attacked  him  bitterly,  in  the  New  York 
Tribune,  on  the  slavery  issue.  Lincoln  replied  in  an 
open  letter  to  the  press,  in  which  he  said : 

"I  would  save  the  Union.  I  would  save  it  the  shortest 
way  under  the  Constitution.  *  *  *  If  there  be  those 
who  would  not  save  the  Union  unless  they  could  at  the 
same  time  save  slavery,  I  do  not  agree  with  them.  My 
paramount  object  in  this  struggle  is  to  save  the  Union, 
and  is  not  either  to  save  or  destroy  slavery.  If  I  could 
save  the  Union  without  freeing  any  slave,  I  would  do  it ; 
and  if  I  could  save  it  by  freeing  all  the  slaves,  I  would 
do  it ;  and  if  I  could  do  it  by  freeing  some  and  leaving 
others  alone,  I  would  also  do  that.  What  I  do  about 
slavery  and  the  colored  race,  I  do  because  I  believe  it 
helps  to  save  this  Union ;  and  what  I  forbear,  I  forbear 
because  I  do  not  believe  it  would  help  to  save  the  Union. 
*  *  *  I  have  here  stated  my  purpose  according  to  my 
view  of  official  duty,  and  I  intend  no  modification  of  my 
oft-expressed  personal  wish  that  all  men,  everywhere, 
could  be  free."* 

At  the  time,  Lincoln  had  the  Emancipation  Procla- 
mation prepared,  and  was  waiting  only  for  a  Union 
victory,  to  issue  it:  which  proves  that  he  regarded  the 
proclamation  as  a  necessary  war  measure.  Lee's 
first  campaign  into  the  North  closed  with  the  carnage 
at  Antietam,  followed  by  Lee's  retreat.  Lincoln  in- 
terpreted this  as  a  Union  victory;  and  a  few  days 
later,  on  September  23,  1862,  issued  the  proclamation. 


*  Lincoln,  in  open  letter  to  Horace  Greeley,  Executive  Mansion,  Wash- 
ington, August  22,  1862:     Writings,  Vol.  VI,  pp.  123,  124. 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  335 

The  proclamation  is  usually  taken  to  be  one  free-  The  first 

,  A  .  .       t   n  .  Emancipation 

ing  all  slaves.    Actually,  it  contained  tour  items:  Proclamation 

First :  All  slaves  in  States  or  parts  of  States,  in  re-  significance  of 
bellion  against  the  United  States,  were  to  be  free  on  lta  four  ltems* 
January  1,  1863.    That  did  not  free  all  slaves:  it  de- 
clared free  the  slaves  in  just  those  territories  where 
the  Federal  government  could  not,  at  the  time,  en- 
force the  declaration,  except  in  cenquered  territory. 

Second:  Loyal  slave  owners  were  to  receive  com- 
pensation. 

Third:  Lincoln  promised  to  urge  pecuniary  aid 
to  slave  States  within  the  Union,  adopting  a  plan  of 
gradually  freeing  their  slaves. 

Fourth :  The  war  was  being  fought  to  preserve  the 
Union. 

That  was  the  first  Emancipation  Proclamation:   The 

j  -it  t       i  .i      .,  t    Proclamation 

issued  as  a  needed  war  measure ;  and  while  it  aroused  issued  as  a 
some  immediate  antagonism,  as  such,  it  was  a  master-  needed  war 

°  '  '  measure,  and 

stroke.     It  won  the  Abolitionists  to  the  war  to  the  as  sucn>  a 

T  masterpiece. 

end.     It  brought  to  the  Union  the  support  of  the 

liberal  party  throughout  the  world.  It  cut  the  ground 
from  under  the  cabal  in  Congress,  left  it  hanging  in 
the  air,  and  pushed  the  leaders  of  the  opposition  party 
into  the  position  the  cabal  had  occupied.  Finally, 
it  was  a  supreme  assumption  of  war  powers  by  the 
President. 

Meantime,  in  the  field,  Burnside  had  followed  Mc-  Further  disasters 
Clellan  to  defeat  at  the  hands  of  Lee,  with  the  cul- 
minating holocaust  at  Fredericksburg,  well  on  the 
road  to  Richmond. 


336 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The  cheering 
message  from 
the  cotton 
workers  of 
Manchester. 


Lincoln's  reply, 
again  expressing 
his  conviction 
that  the  war  waa 
for  humanity, 


Lincoln  calling 
Hooker  to  the 
chief  command. 


Under  the  multiplying  burden  and  disappoint- 
ments, Lincoln  was  greatly  cheered  by  the  whole- 
hearted expression  of  support  on  the  part  of  the  suf- 
fering workers  at  Manchester,  England,  long  out  of 
employment  through  the  cutting  off  of  cotton  sup- 
plies by  the  war.    He  wrote  them : 

"I  know  and  deeply  deplore  the  sufferings  which  the 
workingmen  at  Manchester,  and  in  all  Europe,  are  called 
to  endure  in  this  crisis.  It  has  been  often  and  studi- 
ously represented  that  the  attempt  to  overthrow  this 
government,  which  was  built  upon  the  foundation  of 
human  rights,  and  to  substitute  for  it  one  which  should 
rest  exclusively  on  the  basis  of  human  slavery,  was  like- 
ly to  obtain  the  favor  of  Europe.  *  *  *  Under  the 
circumstances,  I  cannot  but  regard  your  decisive  utter- 
ances upon  the  question  as  an  instance  of  sublime  Chris- 
tian heroism  which  has  not  been  surpassed  in  any  age 
or  in  any  country.  It  is  indeed  an  energetic  and  rein- 
spiring  assurance  of  the  inherent  power  of  truth  and  of 
the  ultimate  and  universal  triumph  of  justice,  humanity 
and  freedom."* 

Early  in  1863,  Lincoln  called  Hooker  to  the  chief 
command.  Hooker  had  been  talking  rashly  about  the 
need  for  a  dictator,  evidently  implying  that  he  would 
make  a  good  one.  In  appointing  him,  Lincoln  wrote 
Hooker  a  characteristic  letter: 

"Major  General  Hooker. 

General : — I  have  placed  you  at  the  head  of  the  Army 
of  the  Potomac.     Of  course  I  have  done  this  upon  what 


*  Lincoln  in  letter  to  the  Working  Men  of  Manchester,  England, 
Executive  Mansion,  Washington,  Jan.  19,  1863:  Writings,  Vol.  VI, 
p.  250. 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  337 

appear  to  me  to  be  sufficient  reasons,  and  yet  I  think  it 
best  for  you  to  know  that  there  are  some  things  in  re- 
gard to  which  I  am  not  quite  satisfied  with  you.  I  The 
believe  you  to  be  a  brave  and  skilful  soldier,  which  of  letter  to  Hooker, 
course  I  like.  I  also  believe  you  do  not  mix  politics  with 
your  profession,  in  which  you  are  right.  You  have 
confidence  in  yourself,  which  is  a  valuable  if  not  an 
indispensable  quality.  You  are  ambitious,  which  with- 
in reasonable  bounds  does  good  rather  than  harm ;  but  I 
think  that  during  General  Burnside's  command  of  the 
army  you  have  taken  counsel  of  your  ambition  and 
thwarted  him  as  much  as  you  could,  in  which  you  did 
a  great  wrong  to  the  country  and  to  a  most  meritorious 
and  honorable  brother  officer.  I  have  heard,  in  such  a 
way  as  to  believe  it,  of  your  recently  saying  that  both 
the  army  and  the  government  needed  a  dictator.  Of 
course  it  was  not  for  this,  but  in  spite  of  it,  that  I  have 
given  you  the  command.  Only  those  generals  who  gain 
successes  can  set  up  dictators.  What  I  now  ask  of 
you  is  military  success,  and  I  will  risk  the  dictatorship. 
The  government  will  support  you  to  the  utmost  of  its 
ability,  which  is  neither  more  nor  less  than  it  has  done 
and  will  do  for  all  commanders.  I  much  fear  that  the 
spirit  that  you  have  aided  to  infuse  into  the  army,  of 
criticising  their  commander  and  withholding  confidence 
from  him,  will  now  turn  upon  you.  I  shall  assist  you 
as  far  as  I  can  to  put  it  down.  Neither  you  nor  Napo- 
leon, if  he  were  alive  again,  could  get  any  good  out 
of  an  army  while  such  a  spirit  prevails  in  it.  And  now 
beware  of  rashness.  Beware  of  rashness,  but  with  en- 
ergy and  sleepless  vigilance  go  forward  and  give  us 
victories."* 


*  Lincoln,  letter  to  General  Hooker,  Executive  Mansion,  Washington, 
D.  C,  Jan.  26th,  1863:    Writings,  Vol.  VI,  pp.  254,  255. 


338 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Defeat  in  place 
of  hoped-for 
victory. 


Gettysburg 

the  turning  point 

of  the  war. 


Significance  of 
the  Gettysburg 
Address  as 
showing 
Lincoln's  final 
literary 
mastership. 


The  greatest 
classic  in  our 
American 
literature. 


In  place  of  the  begged-for  victory,  came  the  over- 
whelming defeat  of  Chancellorsville,  with  Hooker's 
bewildered  retreat,  followed  by  Lee's  second  cam- 
paign into  the  North,  culminating  in  the  critical  bat- 
tle of  the  war,  Gettysburg. 

After  Gettysburg  and  the  failure  of  Lee's  cam- 
paign, Lincoln  was  sure  that  the  Union  would  win  the 
war.  If  only  he  could  hold  the  people  together,  and  he 
was  convinced  now  he  could  do  that,  the  war  could 
end  but  in  one  way.  His  thoughts  thus  turned  away 
from  the  war  to  what  would  follow  after ;  and  he  began 
planning  to  forestall  the  hate  of  little  men,  which  he 
saw  victory  would  free  for  vengeance  upon  the 
stricken  South.  In  his  Gettysburg  Address,  Novem- 
ber 19,  1863,  he. achieved  perhaps  his  highest  spiritual 
interpretation  of  the  war;  and  showed  he  had  added 
to  his  old  power  of  simple,  direct  statement,  an  ability 
to  lift  the  common  mind  with  a  sweep  of  imaginative 
vision,  proving  that  he  had  finally  become  a  literary 
master. 

"Four  score  and  seven  years  ago  our  fathers  brought 
forth  on  this  continent,  a  new  nation,  conceived  in  Lib- 
erty, and  dedicated  to  the  proposition  that  all  men  are 
created  equal. 

"Now  we  are  engaged  in  a  great  civil  war,  testing 
whether  that  nation  or  any  nation  so  conceived  and  so 
dedicated,  can  long  endure.  We  are  met  on  a  great 
battlefield  of  that  war.  We  have  come  to  dedicate  a 
portion  of  that  field,  as  a  final  resting  place  for  those 
who  here  gave  their  lives  that  that  nation  might  live. 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN 


339 


It  is  altogether  fitting  and  proper  that  we  should  do 
this. 

"But,  in  a  larger  sense,  we  can  not  dedicate — we  can 
not  consecrate — we  can  not  hallow — this  ground.  The 
brave  men,  living  and  dead,  who  struggled  here,  have 
consecrated  it,  far  above  our  poor  power  to  add  or 
detract.  The  world  will  little  note,  nor  long  remember 
what  we  say  here,  but  it  can  never  forget  what  they  did 
here.  It  is  for  us  the  living,  rather,  to  be  dedicated 
here  to  the  unfinished  work  which  they  who  fought  here 
have  thus  far  so  nobly  advanced.  It  is  rather  for  us 
to  be  here  dedicated  to  the  great  task  remaining  before 
us — that  from  these  honored  dead  we  take  increased  de- 
votion to  that  cause  for  which  they  gave  the  last  full 
measure  of  devotion — that  we  here  highly  resolve  that 
these  dead  shall  not  have  died  in  vain — that  this  nation, 
under  God,  shall  have  a  new  birth  of  freedom — and  that 
government  of  the  people,  by  the  people,  for  the  people, 
shall  not  perish  from  the  earth."* 

It  is  no  accident  that  the  world  has  come  to  regard 
this  Address  as  the  purest  classic  in  our  literature. 
In  utter  sincerity  of  feeling,  elevation  of  spiritual 
vision,  noble  restraint  and  compact  brevity  of  style, 
with  that  lofty  simplicity  that  is  the  utterance  of  the 
heart,  it  is  the  supreme  literary  expression  of  Lin- 
coln's soul. 

During  some  nine  months  of  1863,  Congress  was 
not  in  session;  and  its  members  were  all  over  the 
country,  getting  the  reaction  of  their  constituents. 
To  their  surprise  and  often  chagrin,  they  found  that 
Lincoln  had  become  the  people's  hero.    Why?    First 


Why  the 
Gettysburg 
Address  is  the 
highest 
expression    of 
Lincoln's  soul  in 
literature. 


Congress  not  in 
session   from 
March  to 
December,  1863. 


*  Lincoln,    Address    at    Gettysburg,   November    19,    1863: 
Vol.  7,  p.  20. 


Writings, 


340 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Why  Lincoln 
had  finally 
become  the 
people's  hero. 


The  letter  to 
Mrs.  Bixby. 


Significance 
for  the  future 
of  democracy  in 
the    response   of 
the  people  to 
Lincoln. 


of  all,  it  was  the  growing  recognition  of  his  absolute 
integrity  of  character.  He  made  mistakes,  many  of 
them ;  but  he  was  utterly  honest,  he  meant  always  the 
highest,  and  could  be  wholly  trusted.  With  this,  it 
was  his  warm  humanity,  his  mercy,  humor  and  ten- 
derness. The  military  men  would  come  to  him  and 
say  that  he  must  not  let  off  those  who  had  seriously 
broken  their  regulations,  that  it  destroyed  military 
discipline.  Lincoln  would  reply,  "O,  I  am  their 
father.  I  have  to  consider  their  mothers  and  fathers. 
I  am  not  a  military  man.  I  can't  let  a  simple  minded 
boy  be  shot  for  running  away,  and  not  touch  the  man 
who  induced  him  to  desert";  and  he  went  right  on 
pardoning  them.  The  military  men  fumed;  but  the 
people  loved  him. 

There  was  Mrs.  Bixby,  who  was  supposed  to  have 
lost  five  sons  in  the  war.  Lincoln  heard  this  report, 
and  wrote  her  that  beautiful  letter:  so  tender  in  hu- 
manity, so  spiritually  exalted,  so  noble  in  patriotism: 
it  caught  the  imagination  of  the  people  all  over  the 
land. 

The  response  of  the  people  to  Abraham  Lincoln  is 
one  of  the  supreme  justifications  of  our  faith  in  de- 
mocracy; for  it  proves  that  there  is  in  the  breast  of 
common  humanity,  a  power  finally  to  recognize  the 
highest  when  it  appears. 

Before  the  close  of  1863,  in  his  effort  to  thwart  the 
hate  of  little  men,  Lincoln  issued  his  Amnesty  Procla- 
mation, a  year  and  a  half  before  the  war  closed.  It 
offered  full  pardon,  with  restoration  of  all  rights  of 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  341 

citizenship  and  property  (except  slaves),  to  all  but  a 

few  at  the  top,  on  taking  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  panose Sin  the 

United  States.     It  further  provided  that  where  ten  Amnesty 

-i-irx  it  i        Proclamation 

per  cent  of  the  voters  in  a  seceded  State  would  estab-   of  1863. 
lish  a  new  state  government  in  allegiance  to  the  Union, 
Lincoln  would  recognize  that  government. 

The  cabal  in  Congress  was  furious.  Efforts  were 
made  to  transfer  the  action  to  Congress,  and  later  to 
thwart  Lincoln's  carrying  out  of  the  Proclamation; 
but  Lincoln  pressed  steadily  on,  in  this  final  assump- 
tion and  execution  of  war  powers. 

It  was  in  the  spring  of  1864  that  Lincoln  called 
Grant,  from  his  victories  in  Tennessee,  to  the  com- 
mand in  chief  of  the  Union  armies ;  and  Grant  began  March,  1864. 
that  ceaseless  driving  campaign  that  ended  the  war. 
After  the  terrible  losses  of  those  frightful  days  in  the 
Wilderness,  Lincoln  was  in  deepening  misery;  but 
two  days  after  Grant  uttered  those  famous  words,  "I 
propose  to  fight  it  out  on  this  line  if  it  takes  all  sum- 
mer," Lincoln  quoted  Grant  in  a  speech  at  Philadel- 
phia, and  added,  "We  are  going  through  on  this  line  if  T .     ,  ,     ±    , 

f         '  ^        °  b  .  Lincoln's  steady 

it  takes  three  years  more.       Thus  Grant,  with  Lin-  support  of  Grant, 
coin  inflexible  behind  him,  pushed  on.     The  cumula-  terrible*  losses6 
tive  Union  losses,  equalling  in  the  end  Lee's  entire  |rowm|inst  the 
opposing  army,  widely  increased  the  pacifist  senti-  opposition. 
ment  in  the  North,  which  expressed  itself  in  blunder- 
ing efforts  for  premature  peace.     Lincoln  handled 
these  attempts  with  consummate  wisdom,   enabling 
Grant  to  continue  his  relentless  hammering.    Lincoln  futile  efforts 

°  for  peace. 

generously  conceded  everything  else;  but  stood,  un- 


342 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Lincoln 
renominated. 


The  worst  attack 
upon  Lincoln, 
between    the 
nomination  and 
election. 


The  Wade-Davis 
Manifesto. 


alterable,  on  the  preservation  of  the  Union.  The 
Southern  leaders  would  accept  nothing  but  complete 
and  separate  independence.  Every  negotiation 
reached  that  impasse ;  and  the  war  dragged  on. 

At  the  Union  convention  in  June,  Lincoln  was  re- 
nominated. When  he  heard  the  news,  he  said,  "I 
suppose  they  didn't  want  to  swap  horses  crossing  a 
stream."  During  the  last  hours  of  Congress,  Lin- 
coln urged  through  the  bill  drafting  men  without 
monetary  commutation.  Up  to  that  time,  a  man 
drafted  could  pay  a  limited  amount  of  money,  and 
get  off.  Under  this  bill,  every  man  drafted  would 
have  to  serve.  His  party  leaders  warned  Lincoln 
that,  if  he  signed  that  bill,  he  would  not  be  re-elected. 
Lincoln  told  them  that  this  law  was  necessary  to  save 
the  Union ;  and  he  signed  the  bill. 

The  result  was  wide  resentment  over  the  approach- 
ing draft.  This,  with  the  furious  opposition  to  Lin- 
coln's assumption  of  war  powers,  and  the  exaspera- 
tion of  the  growing  pacifist  sentiment  over  the  failure 
of  the  embarrassing  negotiations  for  peace  led  to  the 
worst  attack  of  all  upon  Lincoln,  in  the  summer  be- 
tween the  nomination  and  election.  Leaders  of  his 
own  party  issued  a  public  Manifesto,  declaring  him  a 
usurper  of  the  constitutional  rights  of  Congress. 
There  was  a  strong  movement  to  nominate  another 
candidate,  acceptable  to  Lincoln's  enemies  in  Con- 
gress, in  place  of  the  one  they  regarded  as  a  failure 
and  unfit  for  his  task.  Lincoln's  friends,  frightened, 
took  to  cover;  his  enemies  were  jubilant. 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN 


343 


Lincoln  was  imperturbable.  In  utter  disregard  of 
his  personal  fortunes,  he  pressed  forward  in  his  task 
of  saving  the  Union,  through  winning  the  war.  He 
wrote  out  his  view  of  his  duty,  sealed  the  paper  in  an 
envelope,  and  asked  the  Cabinet  members  to  initial  it, 
at  a  meeting  on  August  23rd.  At  a  Cabinet  meeting, 
following  his  election,  he  asked  the  members  to  open 
and  read  the  paper.    It  was: 

"This  morning,  as  for  some  days  past,  it  seems  ex- 
ceedingly probable  that  this  Administration  will  not  be 
re-elected.  Then  it  will  be  my  duty  to  so  cooperate 
with  the  President  elect,  as  to  save  the  Union  between 
the  election  and  the  inauguration ;  as  he  will  have  secured 
his  election  on  such  ground  that  he  cannot  possibly 
save  it  afterward."* 

Could  there  be  a  higher  example  of  his  utter  self- 
lessness, in  consecration  to  his  cause?  It  was  his  task 
to  win  the  war  and  save  the  Union;  all  else  lay  with 
God. 

Again  it  was  the  fresh  discovery  that  the  people 
were  with  him  that  saved  him.  Stimulated  by  a  suc- 
cession of  Union  victories,  public  opinion  rallied  to 
him.  New  England  came  out  for  him.  Even  Greeley 
came  over  to  him.  He  was  re-elected,  carrying  all 
the  States,  except  New  Jersey,  Delaware  and  Ken- 
tucky, with  a  considerable  majority,  this  time,  of  the 
popular  vote.  It  was  his  utter  sincerity,  integrity  and 
selfless  devotion  that  proved  supreme  statesmanship. 

Lincoln's  second  inauguration  came  when  the  war 


Lincoln's 
consecration  to 
his  cause  and 
disregard    of    his 
own  interests, 


Significance    of 
the   sealed   paper. 


The   triumphant 
reelection. 


Lincoln,  Writings,  Vol.  VII,  pp.  196,  197. 


344 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


The    second 

Inaugural 

Address. 


Closing  words 
of    the   Address. 


Last  days  of 
the  war. 


Lincoln's 
magnanimity 
toward  the 
South. 


was  clearly  drawing  into  its  last  phase.  His  brief 
address  attempted  no  prophesy,  but  clearly  expressed 
the  hope  in  his  heart  for  speedy  and  permanent  peace, 
and  stated  the  idea  achieved.  It  closed  with  those 
noble  words,  familiar  to  every  school  boy,  but  which 
cannot  be  too  often  repeated: 

"With  malice  toward  none,  with  charity  for  all,  with 
firmness  in  the  right  as  God  gives  us  to  see  the  right, 
let  us  strive  on  to  finish  the  work  we  are  in,  to  bind  up 
the  nation's  wounds,  to  care  for  him  wTho  shall  have 
borne  the  battle  and  for  his  widow  and  his  orphan,  to  do 
all  which  may  achieve  and  cherish  a  just  and  lasting 
peace  among  ourselves  and  with  all  nations."* 

Those  words  are  the  soul  of  Abraham  Lincoln. 

He  spent  some  days  at  the  front,  with  Grant,  at 
Petersburg  and  Richmond ;  and  returned  to  urge  that 
all  the  States  should  vote  on  the  Thirteenth  Amend- 
ment. April  9th,  came  the  news  of  Lee's  surrender. 
Two  days  later,  Lincoln  made  a  speech,  in  whch  he 
urged  that  the  Southern  States  should  be  treated  as 
if  they  had  never  left  the  Union.  That  is  a  mag- 
nanimity and  generosity,  unequalled  and  unexampled 
in  any  other  victor  in  history.  At  his  last  Cabinet 
meeting,  he  urged  his  associates  to  put  aside  all 
thoughts  of  hatred  and  revenge:  only  if  resentment 
were  extinguished,  could  there  be  hope  of  unity  and 
harmony. 

Lincoln  had  aged  terribly  during  the  last  years  of 


*  Lincoln,    concluding   passage   from    his    second    Inaugural   Address, 
March  4,  1865:     Writings,  Vol.  VII,  p.  331, 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN 


345 


the  war:  It  seemed  as  if  he  felt  the  death  of  every  man, 

as  if  it  had  been  his  own  son ;  but  now,  with  the  end  at 

hand,  the  burden  was  eased  from  his  long-troubled 

heart.     With  a  lighter  spirit  than  he  had  known  for  The  drive  with 

years,  he  went  out,  on  April  14th,  for  a  long  drive   ^m^1?^111  on 

with  Mrs.  Lincoln.     She  reports  him  as  talking  very 

freely  with  her  on  that  day,  as  saying,  in  effect,  "Well, 

Mary,  we  have  had  a  hard  time  of  it  since  we  came 

to  Washington,  but  better  days  are  in  sight  now.    We 

will  get  through  these  next  four  years  somehow,  and 

go  back  to  Illinois.     I  have  saved  a  little  money.     I 

can  earn  some  more  with  my  law  practice  back  there. 

There  are  some  quiet,  peaceful  years  ahead  of  us 

now." 

That  evening,  in  this  happier  mood,  he  went  to 
Ford's  theater  to  see  Laura  Keene  in  Our  American  The  theater 
Cousin.  Mrs.  Lincoln  had  planned  the  theater  party,  party- 
and  invited  the  Grants.  At  the  last  minute,  they 
could  not  go;  which  saved  Grant's  life,  for  he,  too, 
was  marked  as  victim;  but  Mrs.  Lincoln  said  she 
would  not  have  her  theater  party  spoiled;  so  they 
went.  You  know  the  last  chapter:  John  Wilkes 
Booth,  ex-actor,  half  crazed  with  the  sufferings  of  his 
people,  and  seeing  in  Lincoln  the  symbol  and  head 
of  what  he  regarded  as  the  tyranny  that  had  caused 
those  sufferings,  knowing  every  alley  way  of  the 
theater,  laid  all  his  plans,  crept  behind  the  presidential 
box;  and  shortly  after  the  play  started,  shot  Lin- 
coln through  the  head  from  behind.  Lincoln  never 
regained  consciousness,  and  died  the  next  morning, 


The    last    tragic 
chapter. 


346 


AMERICAN  STATESMEN 


Disaster  to 
the  South  in 
Lincoln's 
assassination. 


Significance  of 
Lincoln  for  the 
future  of 
America. 


April  15,  1865,  fifty-six  years  old:  centuries  old,  with 
the  burden  of  the  nation's  suffering  he  had  borne  so 
long  on  heart  and  brain! 

That  shot,  fired  by  John  Wilkes  Booth,  was  the 
most  terrible  blow  the  South  ever  received.  It  was 
worse  than  any  invading  campaign ;  it  was  worse  even 
than  Sherman's  merciless  march  to  the  sea.  It  put 
the  little  men  in  the  saddle,  the  little  men  who  hate. 
The  result  was  the  horrors  and  wickedness  of  the  re- 
construction period  in  the  South:  horrors  and  wick- 
edness that  would  have  been  avoided,  had  Lincoln 
lived;  for  the  major  effort  of  the  last  two  years  of  his 
life  had  been  to  forestall  the  revenge,  he  knew  would 
be  attempted  upon  the  South  when  the  war  closed.  In 
the  end,  however,  Lincoln's  ideas  conquered:  better 
men  came  into  power;  more  just  and  generous  coun- 
sels prevailed ;  and  the  result  is  the  one  united  Nation, 
we  love  and  cherish  today. 

It  was  Lincoln's  greatness  that  he  did  the  work  of 
Alexander  Hamilton,  on  the  basis  of  the  principles 
of  Thomas  Jefferson;  and  thus  united,  in  his  leader- 
ship and  career,  the  two  strands  of  political  phi- 
losophy that  had  divided  our  country:  united  them, 
let  us  hope,  for  our  whole  future. 


With  six  such  stars  shining  in  our  spiritual  firma- 
ment, with  six  such  leaders  in  our  wonderful  heritage 
from  the  past,  have  we  not  reason  to  be  proud,  and 


ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  347 

humble,  to  regard  that  heritage,  not  as  something 
merely  to  be  gloried  in,  but  as  a  challenge,  to  us,  not 
to  sit  down,  but  to  get  up  and  go  forward,  to  see  to  in  our  heritage 
it  that  the  aim  of  our  forefathers  is  not  defeated,  that  America!1  ay 
the  American  experiment  does  not  fail,  that  America 
becomes  the  Beacon  Light  among  the  nations,  they 
one  and  all  dreamed  she  was  to  be;  until  in  the  end, 
to  use  Lincoln's  great  phrase,  "Government  of  the 
people,  by  the  people,  and  for  the  people"  shall  pre- 
vail, not  only  completely  within  the  nation,  but  in  the 
relations  of  all  the  nations  of  mankind? 


BOOK  LIST 

Books  starred  are  of  special  value  in  relation  to  the 
subjects  of  this  volume;  those  double-starred  are  texts 
for  study  or  are  otherwise  of  first  importance. 

Adam,  G.  Mercer,  The  Life  of  General  Robert  E.  Lee,  pp. 
IV+321,  A.  L.  Burt  &  Co.,  New  York,  1905. 

Adams,  Charles  Francis,  *Lee's  Centennial:  An  Address  at 
Lexington,  Va.,  Jan.  19,  1907,  pp.  76.  Privately 
printed. 

Atherton,  Gertrude,  The  Conqueror :  A  Dramatized  Biog- 
raphy of  Alexander  Hamilton,  pp.  XII +536.  Fred- 
erick A.  Stokes  Co.,  New  York,  1902. 

Atherton,  Gertrude,  Editor.  A  Few  of  Hamilton's  Letters, 
pp.  XXI+227.     The  Macmillan  Co.,  New  York,  1903. 

Bacheller,  Irving,  In  the  Days  of  Poor  Richard,  pp.  4*14. 
Bobbs-Merrill  Co.,  Indianapolis,  1922. 

Barton,  William  E.,  *The  Life  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  2  vols., 
pp.  XVI+517  and  516.  Bobbs-Merrill  Co.,  Indianap- 
olis, 1925. 

Barton,  William  E.,  The  Soul  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  pp.  407. 
George  H.  Doran  Co.,  New  York,  1920. 

Bassett,  John  Spencer,  The  Federalist  System,  pp.  XVIII 
+327.     Harper  &  Bros.,  New  York,  1906. 

Binns,  Henry  Bryan,  Abraham  Lincoln,  pp.  XIII+379. 
Temple  Biographies,  J.  M.  Dent  &  Co.,  London,  1907. 

Bowen,  John  Joseph,  The  Strategy  of  Robert  E.  Lee,  pp. 
256.     Neale  Publishing  Co.,  New  York,  1914. 

Bowers,  Claude  G.,  * Jefferson  and  Hamilton,  pp.  XVII+ 
531.     Houghton  Mifflin  Co.,  New  York,  1925. 
348 


BOOK    LIST  349 

Bowers,  Claude  G.,  The  Party  Battles  of  the  Jackson  Period, 
pp.  XIX+506.    Houghton  Mifflin  Co.,  N.  Y.,  1922. 

Bradford,  Gamaliel,  Jr.,  Lee  the  American,  pp.  XVI + 324. 
Houghton  Mifflin  &  Co.,  Boston,  1912. 

Brooks,  Noah,  Abraham  Lincoln,  pp.  XIV+471.  Heroes  of 
the  Nations,  G.  P.  Putnam's  Sons,  New  York,  1894. 

Bruce,  Philip  Alexander,  Robert  E.  Lee,  pp.  380.  George 
W.  Jacobs  &  Co.,  Philadelphia,  1907. 

Bruce,  William  Cabell,  Benjamin  Franklin:  Self  Revealed, 
2  vols.,  pp.  III+544  and  III+550.  G.  P.  Putnam's 
Sons,  New  York,  1917. 

Channing,  Edward,  The  Jeffersonian  System,  pp.  XII + 
299.     Harper  &  Bros.,  New  York,  1906. 

Charnworth,  Lord  (Godfrey  R.  Benson),  Abraham  Lin- 
coln, pp.  VIII +479.  Makers  of  the  Nineteenth  Cen- 
tury, Henry  Holt  &  Co.,  New  York,  1926. 

Conant,  Charles  A.,  Alexander  Hamilton,  pp.  145.  River- 
side Biographical  Series,  Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co.,  New 
York,  1901. 

Curtis,  William  Eleroy,  *The  True  Abraham  Lincoln,  pp. 
XIV+409,  J.  B.  Lippincott  &  Co.,  Philadelphia,  1904. 

Curtis,  William  Eleroy,  *The  True  Thomas  Jefferson,  pp. 
395,  J.  B.  Lippincott  &  Co.,  Philadelphia,  1901. 

Drinkwater,  John,  Abraham  Lincoln:  A  Play,  pp.  XII+ 
112.     The  Houghton,  Mifflin  Co.,  New  York,  1919. 

Drinkwater,  John,  Robert  E.  Lee:  A  Play,  pp.  95.  Sidg- 
wick  and  Jackson,  London,  1923. 

Fisher,  Sydney  George,  *The  True  Benjamin  Franklin,  pp. 
381.     J.  B.  Lippincott  &  Co.,  Philadelphia,  1898. 

Foley,  John  P.,  Editor,  *The  Jefferson  Cyclopedia,  pp. 
XXII+1009.  The  Funk  &  Wagnalls  Co.,  New  York, 
1900. 

Ford,  Henry  Jones,  * Alexander  Hamilton,  pp.  VIII+381. 
Figures  from  American  History.  Charles  Scribner's 
Sons,  New  York,  1920. 


350  BOOK    LIST 

Ford,  Paul  Leicester,  *The  Many-Sided  Franklin,  pp.  XX 
+  516.    The  Century  Co.,  New  York,  1899. 

Ford,  Paul  Leicester,  Editor,  *The  Sayings  of  Poor  Rich- 
ard, pp.  288.     G.  P.  Putnam's  Sons,  New  York,  1889. 

Ford,  Paul  Leicester,  *The  True  George  Washington,  pp. 
319.     The  J.   B.   Lippincott   Co.,   Philadelphia,   1896. 

Franklin,  Benjamin,  ** Autobiography,  with  an  Introduc- 
tion by  Woodrow  Wilson,  pp.  XIX+299.  The  Cen- 
tury Co.,  New  York,  1910.     Numerous  other  editions. 

Franklin,  Benjamin,  **  Complete  Works,  10  vols.  G.  P. 
Putnam's  Sons,  New  York,  1887. 

Freeman,  Douglas  Southall,  Lee's  Dispatches,  pp.  LXIII 
+400.     G.  P.  Putnam's  Sons,  New  York,  1915. 

Gerwig,  George  William,  Washington,  the  Young  Leader, 
pp.  XII +  144.  Charles  Scribner's  Sons,  New  York, 
1923. 

Gilman,  Bradley,  Robert  E.  Lee,  pp.  IX+205.  The  Mac: 
millan  Co.,  New  York,  1915. 

Hamilton,  Alexander,  **The  Federalist,  edited  by  Henry 
Cabot  Lodge,  pp.  LIX+586.  G.  P.  Putnam's  Sons, 
New  York,  1888. 

Hamilton,  Alexander,  **  Works,  Constitutional  Edition, 
edited  by  Henry  Cabot  Lodge,  12  vols.  G.  P.  Put- 
nam's Sons,  New  York,  1903. 

Hamilton,  Allan  McLane,  *The  Intimate  Life  of  Alexander 
Hamilton,  pp.  XII+482.  Charles  Scribner's  Sons, 
New  York,  1910. 

Hapgood,  Norman,  Abraham  Lincoln:  The  Man  of  the 
People,  pp.  XI+433.  The  Macmillan  Co.,  New  York, 
1913. 

Hapgood,  Norman,  George  Washington,  pp.  XI+419.  The 
Macmillan  Co.,  New  York,  1901. 

Harrison,  James  Albert,  George  Washington,  pp.  XXIII 
+  481.  Heroes  of  the  Nations,  G.  P.  Putnam's  Sons, 
New  York,  1906. 


BOOK    LIST  351 

Herndon,  William  H.  and  Weik,  Jesse  W.,  Abraham  Lin- 
coln: The  True  Story  of  a  Great  Life,  pp.  XXVIII 
+331  and  VII+348.  D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  New  York, 
1913. 

Hill,  Frederick  Trevor,  On  the  Trail  of  Grant  and  Lee, 
pp.  XIV+305.     D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  New  York,  1911. 

Hill,  Frederick  Trevor,  *  On  the  Trail  of  Washington,  pp. 
XIV+276.    D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  New  York,  1922. 

Irving,  Washington,  The  Life  of  George  Washington,  5 
vols.     G.  P.  Putnam  &  Co.,  New  York,  1855-1859. 

Jefferson,  Thomas,  **  Writings,  Definitive  Edition,  edited 
by  Andrew  A.  Lipscomb,  et  al.,  20  vols.,  Jefferson  Me- 
morial Association,  Washington,  1905. 

Johnson,  Bradley  T.,  General  Washington,  pp.  X+338. 
Great  Commanders,  D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  New  York, 
1894. 

Jones,  J.  William,  *Life  and  Letters  of  Robert  Edward  Lee, 
Soldier  and  Man,  pp.  486.  Neale  Publishing  Co.,  New 
York,  1906. 

Jones,  J.  William,  Personal  Reminiscences,  Anecdotes  and 
Letters  of  General  Robert  E.  Lee,  pp.  XVI+509.  D. 
Appleton  &  Co.,  New  York,  1875. 

Lambeth,  W.  A.  and  Manning,  W.  H.,  Thomas  Jefferson 
as  an  Architect  and  Designer  of  Landscapes,  pp.  IX 
+  122+plates.     Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co.,  Boston,  1913. 

Lee,  Fitzhugh,  *  General  Lee,  pp.  432.  Great  Commanders, 
D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  New  York,  1894. 

Lee,  Captain  Robert  E.,  * Recollections  and  Letters  of  Gen- 
eral Robert  E.  Lee,  by  his  Son,  pp.  XII +461.  Dou- 
bleday,  Page  &  Co.,  New  York,  1904. 

Lincoln,  Abraham,  ** Writings,  edited  by  Arthur  Brooks 
Lapsley,  8  vols.,  G.  P.  Putnam's  Sons,  New  York, 
1905,  6. 


352  BOOK    LIST 

Lodge,  Henry  Cabot,  Alexander  Hamilton,  pp.  VIII +31 7. 
American  Statesmen,  Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co.,  Boston, 
1898. 

Lodge,  Henry  Cabot,  ^George  Washington,  2  vols.,  pp. 
VI+341  and  399.  American  Statesmen,  Houghton, 
Mifflin  Co.,  Boston,  1917. 

Long,  A.  L.,  Memoirs  of  Robert  E.  Lee,  pp.  707.  Sampson 
Low,  Marston,  Searle,  and  Rivington,  London,   1886. 

Lossing,  Benson  John,  et  al.,  Harper's  Encyclopaedia  of 
American  History,  revised  edition,  10  vols.  Harper  & 
Bros.,  New  York. 

MacChesney,  Nathan  William,  Editor,  Abraham  Lmcoln: 
TJie  Tribute  of  a  Century,  pp.  XXVIII+555.  A.  C. 
McClurg  &  Co.,  Chicago,  1910. 

Maurice,  Frederick,  Editor,  An  Aide-de-Camp  of  Lee,  Be- 
ing the  Papers  of  Charles  Marshall,  pp  XXIX+287. 
Little,  Brown  &  Co.,  Boston,  1927. 

Maurice,  Sir  Frederick  Barton,  Robert  E.  Lee,  the  Soldier, 
pp  VII+313.    Houghton,  Mifflin  Co.,  New  York,  1925. 

McMaster,  John  Bach,  Benjamin  Franklin  as  a  Man  of 
Letters,  pp.  IX+293,  American  Men  of  Letters,  Hough- 
ton, Mifflin  &  Co.,  Boston,  1900. 

Merwin,  Henry  Childs,  Thomas  Jefferson,  pp.  164.  River- 
side Biographical  Series,  Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co.,  Bos- 
ton, 1901. 

More,  Paul  Elmer,  Benjamin  Franklin,  pp.  139.  Riverside 
Biographical  Series.  Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co.,  Boston, 
1900. 

Morse,  John  T.,  Jr.,  Abraham  Lincoln,  2  vols.  pp.  VI+387 
and  VI +373.  American  Statesmen,  Houghton,  Mifflin 
&  Co.,  Boston,  1893. 

Morse,  John  T.,  Jr.,  Benjamin  Franklin,  pp.  VI. +  428. 
American  Statesmen,  Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co.,  Boston, 
1896. 


BOOK    LIST  353 

Morse,  John  T.,  Jr.,  The  Life  of  Alexander  Hamilton,  2 

vols.,  pp.  IX+425  and  384.     Little,  Brown  &  Co.,  Bos- 
ton, 1876. 
Morse,  John  T.,   Jr.,   Thomas  Jefferson,   pp.   XIII+326. 

American  Statesmen,  Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co.,  Boston, 

1898. 
Muzzey,  David  Saville,  Thomas  Jefferson,  pp.  VIII+319. 

Charles  Scribner's  Sons,  New  York,  1918. 
Nicolay,  John  G.,  A  Short  Life  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  pp. 

XVI+578.     The  Century  Co.,  New  York,  1902. 
Nicolay,  John  G.,  and  Hay,  John,  Abraham  Lincoln:    A 

History,  10  vols.     The  Century  Co.,  New  York,  1890. 
Oliver,  Frederick   Scott,  Alexander  Hamilton:  An  Essay 

on  American  Union,  pp.  XIII +502.     G.  P.  Putnam's 

Sons,  New  York,  1906. 
Page,  Thomas  Nelson,  * Robert  E.  Lee:    Man  and  Soldier, 

pp.  XVIII+734.     Charles  Scribner's  Sons,  New  York, 

1911. 
Parton,  James,  *The  Life  and  Times  of  Benjamin  Frank- 
lin, 2  vols.,  pp.  627  and  707.     Mason  Bros.,  New  York, 

1864. 
Phillips,  Wendell,  Speeches,  Lectures  and  Letters.   Series  I, 

pp.  IV+562,  Walker,  Wise  &  Co.,  Boston,  1864.    Series 

II,  pp.  V+476.    Lee  and  Shepard,  Boston,  1892. 
Pierson,  Hamilton  W.,  Jefferson  at  Monticello,   pp.    138. 

Charles  Scribner,  New  York,  1862. 
Putnam,  George  Haven,  Abraham  Lincoln,  pp.  VIII +  292. 

G.  P.  Putnam's  Sons,  New  York,  1909. 
Randall,  Henry  S.,  The  Life  of  Thomas  Jefferson,  3  vols. 

Derby  and  Jackson,  New  York,  1858. 
Russell,  Phillips,  Benjamin  Franklin:    The  First  Civilized 

American,  pp.  X+323.     Brentano's,  New  York,  1926. 
Sandburg,  Carl,  Abraham  Lincoln:    The  Prairie  Years,  2 

vols.,  pp.  XVI+480  and  VI+482.     Harcourt,  Brace 

&  Co.,  New  York,  1926. 


354  BOOK    LIST 

Scott,  Winfield,  Memoirs,  Written  by  Himself,  2  vols.,  pp. 

XXII+653.     Sheldon  &  Co.,  New  York,  1864. 
Shepherd,  Henry  E.,  Life  of  Robert  Edward  Lee,  pp.  280. 

The  Neale  Publishing  Co.,  New  York,  1906. 
Shirley,  Ralph,  A  Short  Life  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  pp.  188. 

Funk  &  Wagnalls  Co.,  New  York,  1919. 
Stephenson,  Nathaniel  Wright,  Compiler.     *An  Autobiog- 
raphy of  Abraham  Lincoln:   Consisting  of  the  Personal 

Portions  of  His  Letters,  Speeches  and  Conversations, 

pp.  501.    Bobbs-Merrill  Co.,  Indianapolis,  1926. 
Stephenson,  Nathaniel  Wright,  ^'Lincoln,  pp.   474.     The 

Bobbs-Merrill  Co.,  Indianapolis,  1922. 
Sumner,  William  Graham,  Alexander  Hamilton,  pp.  X+ 

281.      Makers   of  America,   Dodd,   Mead   &   Co.,   New 

York,  1890. 
Tarbell,  Ida  M.,  *In  the  Footsteps  of  the  Lincolns,  pp. 

XI+418.    Harper  &  Bros.,  New  York,  1924. 
Tarbell,  Ida  M.,  *The  Life  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  2  vols., 

pp.  XXXVI+426  and  475.     The  Macmillan  Co.,  New 

York,  1917. 
Thayer,  William  Roscoe,  George   Washington,  pp.   IX + 

274.     Houghton,  Mifflin  Co.,  Boston,  1922. 
Trent,  William  P.,  Robert  E.  Lee,  pp.  XVIII+135.     Bea- 
con Biographies,  Small,  Maynard  &  Co.,  Boston,  1899. 
Vandenberg,   Arthur   Hendrick,    The   Greatest   American: 

Alexander  Hamilton,  pp.  XX+353.     G.  P.  Putnam's 

Sons,  New  York,  1921. 
Washington,  George,  ** Diaries,  edited  by  John  C.   Fitz- 

patrick,   4   vols.      Houghton,   Mifflin   Co.,   New   York, 

1925. 
Washington,   George,   *  Writings,   edited   by   Lawrence  B. 

Evans,  pp.  LXIX+567.     G.  P.  Putnam's  Sons,  New 

York,  1908. 


BOOK    LIST  355 

Washington,  George,  **  Writings,  collected  and  edited  by 
Worthington  Chauncey  Ford,  14  vols.  G.  P.  Putnam's 
Sons,  New  York,  1889-1893. 

Watson,  Thomas  E.,  The  Life  and  Times  of  Thomas  Jef- 
ferson, pp.  XXII+534.  D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  New 
York,  1903. 

Watson,  Thomas  E.,  Thomas  Jefferson,  pp.  XV+150. 
Beacon  Biographies,  Small,  Maynard  &  Co.,  Boston, 
1900. 

White,  Henry  Alexander,  Robert  E.  Lee  and  the  Southern 
Confederacy,  pp.  XIII+467.  Heroes  of  the  Nations, 
G.  P.  Putnam's  Sons,  New  York,  1897. 

Williams,  John  Sharp,  Thomas  Jefferson,  His  Permanent 
Influence  on  American  Institutions,  pp.  IX+330.  Co- 
lumbia University  Press,  New  York,  1913. 

Wilson,  Woodrow,  ^George  Washington,  pp.  VIII+333. 
Harper  and  Bros.,  New  York,  1896. 

Woodward,  W.  E.,  George  Washington:  The  Image  and  the 
Man,  pp.  460+XXXV.  Boni  &  Liveright,  New  York, 
1926. 


INDEX 


Adams,  John,  35,  37,  58,  63,  98, 
99,  108,  111,  112,  114,  115,  140, 
152-155,  158,  159,  170,  171,  173, 
220,  229-231. 

Adams,  Mrs.  John,  113. 

Adams,  John  Quincy,  253. 

Adams,  Samuel,  37,  153;  letter  of 
Jefferson  to,   158. 

Allen,  Ethan,  36. 

America,  challenge  of  heritage,  9, 
135,  174,  197,  198,  286,  346,  347; 
characterized,  10,  134,  135;  new 
problems  of,  5,  134,  135;  view 
of  the  fathers,  5,  114,  347. 

Americanism,  5,  6. 

Andre,  John,  47-52,  189. 

Arnold,  Benedict,  46,  49-52,  138, 
189. 

Arnold,  Mrs.  Benedict,  51,  189. 

Atherton,  Gertrude,  177. 

Bache,  Benjamin  F.,  84. 
Beauregard,    Pierre    G.    T.,    245. 
Bell,  John,  321,  322. 
Bellini,  Charles,  141,  142. 
Bixby,  Mrs.,  letter  of  Lincoln  to, 

340. 
Blair,  Francis  P.,  261. 
Bonaparte,  Napoleon,  54,  153,  160, 

161,  168,  268,  333. 
Bond,  Thomas,  98. 
Booth,  John  Wilkes,  345,  346. 
Boudinot,  Elias,  182. 
Braddock,  Edward,  21,  22,  101, 102. 
Breckenridge,    John    Cabell,    321, 

322. 
Brillon,  Madame,  113. 
Brown,  John,   247,   248,   256,   257, 

310,  319,  320. 
Bryant,  William  Cullen,  319. 
Buchanan,  James,  322,  323. 
Burgoyne,  Sir  John,  43-45,  112. 
Burnside,  Ambrose  E.,  275,  335. 
Burr,  Aaron,  39,  155,  156,  230-234. 


Carlyle,  Thomas,  73. 

Carrington,  Edward,  217,  218. 

Cartwright,  Peter,  302. 

Chandler,  Zachary,  328. 

Channing,   William   Ellery,   302. 

Clarke,  Major,  16. 

Clarke,  William,  163. 

Clay,  Henry,  314,  315. 

Clinton,  George,   199,  200,  204. 

Clinton,  Sir  Henry,  47-52. 

Collinson,  Peter,  99,   100. 

Congress,  Continental,  34,  35,  37, 
38,  39,  40,  41,  45,  53,  54,  55, 
128,  139,  140,  173,  183,  187,  188, 

193,  194,  195,  198,  202,  210,  211, 
235. 

Constitutional  Convention,  57,  145, 

194,  199,  200. 
Conway    Cabal,  45,  46. 
Conway,  Thomas,  45. 
Cooper,  Myles,  184,  185. 
Cornwallis,   Lord  Charles,  39,   40, 

42,  43,  52,  192. 
Cruger,  Nicholas,  181. 
Custis,  G.  W.  Parke,  26,  27,  241, 

247. 
Custis,  Jack,  25,  26,  53,  241. 
Custis,  Patsy,  19,  25. 

Davis,  Henry  Winter,  342. 

Davis  Jefferson,  245,  247,  248,  266, 
269,  270,  277,  279. 

Deane,  Silas,  110,  111,  131. 

Declaration  of  Independence,  38, 
109,  128-130,  156,  163,  173,  184, 
291,  292,  306,  307,  327. 

Donald,  A.,  145,  146. 

Douglas,  Stephen  A.,  130,  299,  305, 
306,  308,  309,  311,  312;  charac- 
terized, 313,  314;  debates  with 
Lincoln,  313-317,  318;  rallying 
to  the  war,  330,  331;  death,  331. 

Dowse,  Edward,  165, 


356 


INDEX 


357 


Early,  Jubal  A.,  245,  281. 
Emerson,  Ralph  Waldo,  73,  302. 

Fairfax,  Lord  Thomas,  14,  15. 

Fauquier,  Francis,  120. 

Fawcett,  John,  177. 

Field,  David  Dudley,  319. 

Franklin,  Abiah  Folger,  67. 

Franklin,  Benjamin,  characterized, 
6,  7;  19,  22,  35,  44;  part  in  the 
Revolution,  66;  relation  to 
Washington,  66,  67 ;  ancestry, 
67;  father,  67,  68;  mother,  67; 
birth,  67 ;  schooling,  68 ;  early 
reading,  68 ;  Autobiography ,  68- 
70;  characteristics,  70,  71;  ap- 
prenticed to  the  printer's  trade, 
71;  struggle  for  education,  72, 
73;  the  New  England  Courant, 
74;  journalistic  efforts,  74;  to 
Philadelphia,  75,  76;  at  work 
with  Keimer,  76,  77;  visit  to 
Boston,  77 ;  relations  with  Gov- 
ernor Keith,  77,  78;  first  trip  to 
England,  78,  79 ;  return  to  Phila- 
delphia, 79;  with  Keimer  again, 
80;  partnership  with  Meredith, 
80;  at  twenty-four  an  indepen- 
dent printer,  80;  the  Pennsyl- 
vania Gazette,  80,  81;  the  Junto, 
81;  founding  a  subscription  li- 
brary, 81;  moral  faults,  82; 
seeking  a  wife,  82,  83 ;  marriage 
with  Deborah  Read,  83 ;  domes- 
tic life,  83-89;  letters,  85-88; 
scheme  of  discipline  in  the  vir- 
tues, 89-92;  Poor  Richard's  Al- 
manac, 92-96;  collecting  pro- 
verbial wisdom,  95,  96;  Father 
Abraham's  speech,  96;  retire- 
ment from  business,  97 ;  further 
studies,  97 ;  public  service,  97, 
98;  discoveries  and  inventions, 
98-101;  experiments  with  elec- 
tricity, 99-101;  plan  for  a  union 
of  the  Colonies,  101 ;  services  in 
the  French  and  Indian  War,  101- 
103;  the  five  years  in  England, 
103,  104;  travels  and  contact 
with  scholars,  104;  the  third 
residence   in    England,    104-109; 


examination  before  Parliament, 
106;  attitude  as  diplomat,  106, 
107;  newspaper  articles,  107; 
affair  of  the  Hutchinson  letters, 
107-109;  arraignment  by  Lord 
Wedderburn,  108,  109;  return 
home,  109 ;  services  of  the  Amer- 
ican cause,  109,  110;  to  France 
at  seventy,  110;  the  French  wel- 
come, 110,  111;  attacks,  111; 
meeting  with  Voltaire,  111,  112; 
signing  the  treaty,  112;  services 
as  Ambassador,  112,  113;  social 
life,  113;  letter  to  Washington 
in  1780,  113,  114;  view  of  Amer- 
ica's future,  114;  signing  the 
peace  treaty,  115;  return  to 
Philadelphia      at      seventy-nine, 

115,  116;  President  of  Pennsyl- 
vania Council, »  116;  service  in 
the    Constitutional    Convention, 

116,  117;  last  years  and  death, 
117;  summarv,  117;  118,  122, 
131,  140,  152,  175,  291,  303,  304. 

Franklin,    Deborah    Read,    76,    78, 

79,  83-89,  105,  106,  109. 
Franklin,   James,    71,    73,    74,    75, 

77. 
Franklin,  Josiah,  67,  68,  71,  72,  74, 

77. 
Franklin,  William,  69,  84,  85,  98, 

104. 
Franklin,  William  Temple,  104. 
Frederick  the  Great,  43,  46. 
Fremont,  John  Charles,  329. 
French    and    Indian    War,    17-23, 

101-103,    115. 
Freneau,  Philip,  220. 

Gates,  Horatio,  41,  44-46,  188. 
Genet,   Edmond    Charles,    59,    147- 

149. 
Gist,  Christopher,  17. 
Godfrey,  Thomas,  82,  83,  92. 
Grant,  U.  S.,  39,  245,  270,  280-283, 

341,  344,  345. 
Grasse,  Count  de,  52. 
Greeley,  Horace,  281,  319,  321,  334, 

343. 
Greene,   Nathanael,  46,   52,   240, 


358 


INDEX 


Halleck,  Henry  W.,  272,  278,  333. 

Hamilton,  Alexander,  character- 
ized, 7;  37,  46,  50-52,  55,  57,  58, 
60,  118,  143,  147;  relations  with 
Jefferson,  149-152,  155,  156;  159, 
162,  167;  virtual  creator  of  the 
Federal  government,  175;  birth, 
175;  relation  of  the  West  Indies 
to  the  mainland,  176;  a  patriot, 
176;  ancestry,  177-180;  the  Hu- 
guenot French  grandfather,  177; 
mother,  178-180;  the  Scotch 
father,  179,  180;  later  relations 
with  family,  180,  181;  early  edu- 
cation, 181 ;  clerk  for  Nicholas 
Cruger,  181;  account  of  the  hur- 
ricane, 181,  182;  to  the  main 
land  for  college  education,  182; 
in  school  at  Elizabethtown,  182; 
King's  College,  183;  significance 
of  early  pamphlets,  183,  184;  the 
mob  at  Dr.  Cooper's,  184,  185; 
belief  in  authoritative  govern- 
ment, 185;  initial  contrast  with 
Jefferson,  185;  captain  of  artil- 
lery, 185-187;  service  in  the 
New  York-New  Jersey  campaign, 
186;  four  years  as  Washington's 
secretary,  187-190;  contrast  with 
Washington,  187,  188;  physical 
characteristics,  188;  marriage, 
188,  189;  domestic  life,  189; 
temporary  break  with  Washing- 
ton, 189-191;  fault  in  character, 
190,  191;  colonel  of  light  infan- 
try, 191;  service  at  Yorktown, 
192;  studying  for  the  Law,  192; 
service  in  the  Continental  Con- 
gress, 193,  194;  early  calls  for  a 
Constitutional  Convention,  194; 
beginning  law  practice,  194;  first 
victory  for  Nation  versus  State, 
195,  196;  the  Phocion  letters, 
196-198;  lesson  for  today,  197, 
198;  Annapolis  Convention,  198, 
199;  calling  the  Constitutional 
Convention,  199;  efforts  to  bring 
New  York  in  line,  199,  200;  ser- 
vice in  the  Convention,  200;  the 
first  Federalist  paper,  201 ;  the 
part  of  Jay  and  Madison,  201 ; 
significance  of  work  in  the  Fed- 


eralist, 201*204;  the  Poughkeep- 
sie  Convention,  204;  accepting 
Treasury  secretaryship,  205;  the 
task  faced,  205-207;  the  Report 
of  Jan.  9th,  1790,  207-209;  as- 
sumption, 209-211;  bargain  with 
Jefferson,  211;  establishing  the 
National  Bank,  212;  view  of  im- 
plied powers  in  the  Constitution, 
212-214;  contrast  with  Jefferson 
in  Philosophy,  213,  214;  the 
Report  on  Manufactures,  214- 
216;  view  of  free  trade,  215;  rea- 
sons for  fostering  manufactures, 
215,  216;  Jefferson's  distrust 
and  enmity,  216-220;  letter  to 
Colonel  Carrington,  217,  218;  at- 
tacks, 220,  221 ;  handling  of  the 
Whiskey  Rebellion,  221,  222; 
resignation  from  the  Treasury, 
222;  boss  of  the  Federalist 
party,  222;  drafting  Washing- 
ton's Farewell  Address,  222, 
223;  the  Reynolds  affair,  223- 
225;  publication  of  Reynolds 
pamphlet,  224,  225;  autobiog- 
raphy in  letter  to  relative  in 
Scotland,  225-229 ;  controversy 
with  John  Adams,  229-231;  In- 
spector-General, 229,  230;  pam- 
phlet on  the  Public  Character 
and  Conduct  of  John  Adams, 
230,  231 ;  part  in  making  Jeffer- 
son President,  231;  relations 
with  Burr,  231-234;  circum- 
stances of  the  duel,  232-234; 
death,  July  12th,  1804,  233;  long 
widowhood  of  Mrs.  Hamilton, 
234;   235,  236,  248-250. 

Hamilton,       Alexander,        ( Scotch 
relative  of  Hamilton's),  225-229. 

Hamilton,  Allan  McLane,   177. 

Hamilton,  Elizabeth  Schuyler,  188, 
189,  225,  227,  228. 

Hamilton,  James,  179,  180,  228. 

Hamilton,  James,  Jr.,  179,  180. 

Hamilton,  Philip,  192,  232. 

Hamilton,  Philip  ("Little  Philip") , 
232. 

Hamilton,  Rachel,  178-180. 

Hancock,  John,  58,   108. 

Hancock,  Winfield  Scott,  245. 


INDEX 


359 


Hanks,  Lucy,  289. 
Hanks,   Nancy,   288-290. 
Hartley,  David,  110. 
Helvetius,  Madame,  113. 
Henry,  Patrick,  34,  35,  128. 
Herndon,    William    H.,    298,    302, 

322. 
Hooker,  Joseph,  275-278,  Lincoln's 

letter  appointing,  336,  337;  338. 
Houdetot,  Countess  d',  113. 
Howe,  Sir  William,  36-40,  44,  45, 

47. 
Hughes,  John,  105. 
Hutchinson,  Thomas,   107,   108. 

Jackson,  Andrew,  240,  253. 

Jackson,  Thomas  J.  (Stonewall), 
245    276. 

Jav,  John,  56,  57,  114,  115,  185, 
201. 

Jefferson,    Jane    Randolph,    119. 

Jefferson,  Martha  Skelton,  123- 
127,  131. 

Jefferson,  Peter,  118,  119. 

Jefferson,  Thomas,  characterized, 
7;  29,  58,  110;  ancestry  and 
birth,  118;  father,  118,  119; 
mother,  119;  Shadwell,  119; 
schooling,  119,  120;  at  William 
and  Mary  College,  119-121;  in- 
fluence of  Dr.  Small,  120,  121; 
studying  law,  121 ;  success  as 
lawyer,  121,  122;  six  years' 
service  as  burgess,  122;  Sum- 
mary of  the  Rights  of  America, 
122,  123;  marriage,  123;  Monti- 
cello,  123,  124;  view  of  slavery, 
124,  125;  handling  of  slaves, 
125;  large  inheritance  from 
John  Wayles,  125,  126;  domestic 
life,  126,  127;  farmer  and  busi- 
ness man,  127,  128;  contrast 
with  Washington,  127;  in  Rich- 
mond Convention,  128;  delegate 
to  second  Continental  Congress, 
128;  drafting  answers  to  Lord 
North's  Propositions,  128 ;  sig- 
nificance as  author  of  the 
Declaration  of  Independence, 
128-130;  revising  the  Virginia 
statutes,  131-137;  eliminating 
primogeniture    and    entail,    131, 


132;  abrogating  oppressive  laws 
on  religion,  132-134;  the  great 
statute  on  religious  freedom, 
134;  father  of  American  re- 
ligious liberty,  134;  significance 
of  Jefferson's  ideas  for  present 
day  America,  134,  135;  program 
on  education,  135;  on  slavery, 
135,  136;  revision  of  the  penal 
system,  136,  137 ;  Jefferson's 
view  of  the  significance  of  his 
work,  137;  Governor  of  Vir- 
ginia, 138;  Notes  on  Virginia, 
138,  139;  services  in  Continental 
Congress  of  1783,  139,  140;  to 
France  for  five  years,  140-144; 
social  life,  140;  impression  of 
French  society,  141,  142;  rela- 
tion to  French  Revolution,  142, 
143;  love  for  France,  143,  144; 
Americanism,  144,  145;  view  of 
Constitution,  145,  146;  Secre- 
tary of  State,  146-151;  the 
Genet  affair,  147-149 ;  relations 
with  Hamilton,  149-152;  the 
bargain  on  assumption,  149-151; 
contrast  with  Hamilton,  150; 
resignation  from  Cabinet,  151; 
the  Anas,  151 ;  gravest  fault, 
151,  152;  preference  for  agri- 
culture, 152;  Vice  President, 
152-155;  relations  with  John 
Adams,  152,  153;  view  of  the 
Alien  and  Sedition  laws,  154; 
drafting  the  Kentucky  Resolu- 
tions, 154;  view  of  State  versus 
Nation,  154,  155;  elected  Presi- 
dent, 155,  156;  first  Inaugural 
Address,  156-158;  letter  to 
Samuel  Adams,  158;  the  Cabi- 
net, 158;  removing  the  "mid- 
night judges,"  159;  efforts  to 
thwart  aristocracy,  159,  160; 
the  Louisiana  purchase,  160- 
163;  paradox  of  the  purchase 
and  its  explanation,  162;  the 
Lewis  and  Clarke  expedition, 
162,  163;  the  expansionist,  163; 
plan  for  government  of  the  new 
territory,  163,  164;  life-long  cul- 
tural activities,  164-166;  view 
of  teaching  of  Jesus,   164,   165; 


360 


INDEX 


Jefferson,  Thomas — Continued. 
reasons  for  accepting  a  second 
term,  166;  triumphant  reelec- 
tion, 166;  view  of  the  national 
debt,  167,  168;  foreign  policy, 
168;  the  Embargo  Act,  168, 
169;  refusal  of  a  third  term  and 
retirement  to  Monticello,  169; 
founding  the  University  of  Vir- 
ginia, 169,  170;  service  as  archi- 
tect and  Rector,  170;  view  of 
life  in  letter  to  John  Adams, 
170,  171;  financial  troubles,  171, 
172;  death  on  July  4th,  1826, 
173;  significance  of  the  self- 
written  epitaph,  173,  174;  sum- 
mary, 174;  challenge  for  today, 
174;  175,  184,  185,  196;  rela- 
tions with  Hamilton,  211-214, 
216-220;  231,  235,  238,  248-250, 
255,  305-308,   311,   327. 

Johnston,   Joseph   E.,   245. 

Kalb,  Baron  Johann  de,  46. 
Keene,  Laura,  345. 
Keimer,  Samuel,  77,  80. 
Keith,  Sir  William,  77,  78. 
Knox,  Henry,  46,  58,  147,  221,  229. 
Knox,  Hugh,  181. 

La  Fayette,  Marquis  de,  46,  52, 
142. 

Lansing,    John,    200. 

Laurens,  John,   189,  232. 

Lee,  Anne  Carter,  239,  240. 

Lee,    Arthur,    110,    111. 

Lee,  Charles,  47,  48,  232. 

Lee,  Custis,  247,  258,  259,  265. 

Lee,  Light  Horse  Harry,  24,  46,  49, 
65,  188,  239,  240. 

Lee,  Mary  Parke  Custis,  241-243, 
259,  260,  261,  265,  277. 

Lee,  Richard  Henry,  128. 

Lee,  Robert  Edward,  characterized, 
8;  24,  169;  leader  of  the  South, 
235 ;  circumstances  compelling 
the   union   of   States,   235,   236; 

growth  of  national  unity,  236, 
237 ;  influence  of  immigration 
and  industries  on  the  North, 
236,  237;  causes  for  the  survival 


of  State  patriotism  in  the  South, 
237,  238;  culmination  of  the 
Southern  tradition  in  Virginia, 
238;  influences  behind  Lee,  237, 
238;  birth,  238,  239;  father,  239, 
240;  mother,  239,  240;  death  of 
father  in  1818,  240;  chivalry 
toward  mother,  240;  education, 
240,  241 ;  lieutenant  of  engineers, 
241 ;  service  at  Hampton  Roads, 
241;  marriage,  241;  bonds  with 
family  of  Washington,  240-242; 
choosing  Washington  as  model, 
242;  similarity  in  character 
with  Washington,  242 ;  domestic 
life,  242;  the  Nat  Turner  re- 
bellion, 242,  243;  service  at  St. 
Louis,  244;  at  New  York,  244; 
in  the  War  with  Mexico,  244- 
247 ;  praised  by  General  Scott, 
245,  246 ;  brevetted  colonel,  247 ; 
Superintendent  of  West  Point, 
247;  service  in  Texas,  247,  248; 
called  to  Arlington,  247 ;  sup- 
pressing the  John  Brown  raid, 
247,  248;  ordered  to  Washing- 
ton in  1861,  248;  arriving  to 
find  the  Confederacy  established, 
248;  significance  of  the  Civil 
War,  248-250;  original  conflict 
of  State  versus  Nation  as  not 
sectional,  250-253 ;  New  England 
first  challenging  the  Federal 
government,  251-253;  Webster's 
speech,  251,  252;  the  Hartford 
Convention,  252;  Rawle's  View 
of  the  Constitution,  252,  253 ; 
Andrew  Jackson  and  the  Union, 
253 ;  the  Haverhill  petition,  253 ; 
causes  for  the  sectional  cleav- 
age, 253-255;  contrasting  views 
of  slavery,  255,  256 ;  speeches  of 
Wendell  Phillips,  255-257;  sig- 
nificance to  the  South  of  dispro- 
portion in  voting  population, 
256-258;  meaning  of  the  South- 
ern demand  for  extension  of 
slave  territory,  257,  258;  effect 
of  Lincoln's  election,  258;  for- 
mation of  the  Confederacy,  258; 
Lee's  view  of  the  situation,  258, 
259;    opposed    to    slavery,    259, 


INDEX 


361 


Lee,  Robert  Edward — Continued. 
260 ;  devotion  to  the  Union,  260, 
261 ;  service  in  U.  S.  Army,  261 ; 
offered  command  of  Union 
armies,  261 ;  circumstances  of 
the  great  decision,  26 L264 ; 
resignation  and  letter  tlx'ljren- 
eral  Scott,  261,  262;  letter  to 
sister,  262,  263;  letter  to 
brother,  263;  accepting  com- 
mand of  Virginia  forces,  2jj4; 
reasons  for  the  supreme  de- 
cision, 2J34;  view  of  the  con- 
flict, 26*4,  '  265  i_  high  magna- 
nimity, 265 ;  contrasting  situa- 
tion in  the  Union  and  the  Con- 
federacy when  the  war  started, 
265,  266;  the  two  chances  for 
the  South,  266-268;  groups  in 
the  Union  opposed  to  the  war, 
267,  268;  attitude  of  the  Aboli- 
tionists, 267,  268;  Lee's  mil- 
itary achievement,  268;  West 
Virginia  campaign,  269;  service 
in  Georgia  and  the  Carolinas, 
269;  chief  of  staff,  269;  rela- 
tions with  President  Davis,  270; 
Malvern  Hill,  271;  understand- 
ing McClellan,  271;  defeating 
Pope,  272;  first  campaign  into 
the  North,  272-275;  Proclama- 
tion to  the  People  of  Maryland, 
273,  274;  Antietam,  274,  275; 
Fredericksburg,  275;  Hooker's 
campaign,  275,  276;  Chancel- 
lorsville,  276;  relation  to  Jack- 
son, 276;  death  of  Jackson,  276; 
view  of  the  situation,  276,  277; 
plan  and  appeal  to  President 
Davis,  277 ;  personal  sorrows, 
277 ;  second  campaign  into  the 
North,  277,  278;  Gettysburg, 
278,  279;  attitude  in  defeat, 
279;  appointment  of  Grant,  280; 
comparison  of  Lee  and  Grant, 
280;  the  Wilderness,  280,  281; 
Grant's  determination,  281; 
Union  losses,  281 ;  situation  in 
spring  of  1865,  281 ;  last  strug- 
gles, 281,  282;  surrender,  282; 
view  of  Lincoln's  assassination, 
282,   283;    indictment,   283;    sig- 


nificance of  application  for  par- 
don, 283;  offers  of  employment, 
283,  284;  President  of  Washing- 
ton College,  284;  view  of  recon- 
struction, 284-286;  last  days  and 
death,  286;  summarv,  286;  287, 
333,  334,  335,  338,  341,  344. 

Leeds,  Titan,  93,  94. 

L'Enfant,  Peter  Charles,  204. 

Letcher,  John,  284,  285. 

Levine,  John,   178,  179. 

Lewis,  Meriwether,  162,  163. 

Lewis,  Nellie  Parke  Custis,  26,  240, 
241. 

Lincoln,  Abraham,  characterized, 
8,  9 ;  62 ;  view  of  the  Declaration 
of  Independence,  129,  130;  view 
of  Jefferson,  129,  130;  152,  235, 
247,  261,  263,  267,  272,  2,75,  278, 
281,  282,  283;  contrast  with  Lee, 
287;  birth,  287;  family,  287-289; 
father,  288-290;  mother,  288- 
290;  move  to  Indiana,  289,  290; 
relation  to  step-mother,  290; 
tenderness  for  animals,  290,  291; 
schooling,  291;  early  reading, 
291,  292;  influence  of  Declara- 
tion of  Independence,  291,  292; 
humor,  292;  manual  labor,  292; 
youthful  characteristics,  292, 
293 ;  to  New  Orleans,  293 ;  move 
to  Illinois,  293;  leaving  father's 
home,  293 ;  later  relation  to 
family,  293,  294;  odd  jobs,  294; 
effect  of  second  trip  to  New 
Orleans,  294;  in  the  Black  Hawk 
war,  294,  295;  with  Berry  as 
general  merchant,  295;  finding 
Blackstone,  295;  failure  in  busi- 
ness and  paying  partnership 
debt,  295,  296;  surveyor  and 
postmaster,  296 ;  in  state  legis- 
lature, 296;  love  for  Ann  Rut- 
ledge,  296,  297;  effect  of  first 
spiritual  crisis,  297 ;  admission 
to  the  Bar  and  removal  to 
Springfield,  297,  298;  friendship 
with  Speed,  298;  marriage,  298- 
300;  conflict  in  Lincoln,  299; 
domestic  life,  300,  301;  partner- 
ship   with    Judge    Logan,    301 ; 


362 


INDEX 


Lincoln,  Abraham — Continued. 
with  Herndon,  302;  religious 
views,  302;  term  in  Congress, 
302,  303;  circuit  riding,  303; 
struggles  for  education,  303 ; 
characteristics  as  lawyer,  304, 
305;  view  of  reversal  of  party 
positions,  305-307 ;  basis  of 
ideas,  307,  308;  Peoria  speech 
giving  first  half  of  life  program, 
308,  309 ;  consequences  of  the 
Dred  Scott  decision,  310,  311; 
reasons  for  joining  Republican 
party,  311,  312;  speech  in  ac- 
cepting nomination  to  the  sen- 
ate, 312,  313;  contrast  with 
Douglas,  313,  314;  the  great 
debates,  313-317;  summary  of 
life  program,  314-316;  political 
strategy,  317;  period  of  depres- 
sion, 317;  invitation  to  Brook- 
lyn, 317,  318;  Cooper  Union 
address,  317-321;  view  of  John 
Brown  raid,  319,  320;  conclud- 
ing appeal,  320,  321 ;  elected 
President,  321,  322;  conse- 
quences of  election,  322,  323; 
situation  at  time  of  inauguration, 
323 ;  first  Inaugural  Address, 
323;  the  initial  question,  323, 
324 ;  relations  with  Seward,  324- 
327;  Seward's  Thoughts,  324- 
326;  Powhatan  affair,  326,  327; 
Fort  Sumter,  326,  327;  message 
of  July  4th,  1861,  327,  328;  Bull 
Run,  328;  the  cabal  in  Congress, 
328 ;  opposition  of  Abolitionists, 
328-330;  attacks  by  Wendell 
Phillips,  329,  330;  harassment 
from  opposition  party,  331; 
solving  the  war  powers  contro- 
versy, 331 ;  view  of  labor  and 
capital,  331,  332;  period  of 
vacillation,  332;  emergence  of 
the  final  Lincoln,  332;  judgment 
of  men,  333;  efforts  to  solve 
slavery,  333;  the  Emancipation 
Proclamation,  333-335 ;  answer 
to  Greeley's  attack,  334 ;  purpose 
and  effect  of  the  Proclamation, 
335;  letter  to  the  Manchester 
workers,    336;     letter    appoint- 


ing Hooker,  336,  337;  Gettys- 
burg Address,  338,  339;  why 
Lincoln  became  the  people's 
hero,  339,  340;  significance  of 
the  popular  response,  340 ; 
Amnesty  Proclamation,  340,  341 ; 
calling  Grant,  341 ;  handling 
efforts  for  peace,  341,  342;  re- 
nominated, 342;  Wade-Davis 
Manifesto,  342;  devotion  to  the 
cause,  343;  reasons  for  trium- 
phant re-election,  343;  second 
Inaugural  Address,  344;  mag- 
nanimity toward  the  South,  344; 
the  drive  with  Mrs.  Lincoln, 
345;  the  last  tragic  chapter, 
345,  346;  consequences  of  as- 
sassination for  the  South,  346; 
summary  of  career,  346;  chal- 
lenge in  our  heritage,  346,  347. 

Lincoln,  Abraham  (grandfather  of 
Lincoln),  288. 

Lincoln,  Mary  Todd,  298-301,  345. 

Lincoln,  Nancy  Hanks,  288-290. 

Lincoln,  Sarah  Bush  Johnston,  290. 

Lincoln,  Thomas,  288-290,  293;  294. 

Logan,  Stephen  T.,  301,  302. 

Longstreet,   James,   245. 

Lytton,  Mrs.  Peter,  180. 

Madison,    James,    145,    154,    158, 

162,  169,  201,  206,  212,  217,  220, 

222,  238,  239. 
Malthus,  Thomas  Robert,  99,  165, 

166. 
Marshall,  John,  159. 
Marshall,   Mrs.    (sister   of   Robert 

E.  Lee),   262,   263. 
Mav,  James,   285,   286. 
McClellan,    George    B.,    245,    270, 

271,  274,  275,  314,  329,  330,  332, 

335. 
McDowell,   Irvin,  328. 
Meade,   George   Gordon,   278. 
Meredith,  Hugh,  80. 
Monroe,  James,  144,  145,  160,  161, 

162,  169,  223,  224,  238. 
Monticello,  123-126,  140,  145,  152, 

159,  169,  172,  173. 
Morris,  Gouverneur,  139. 
Morris,  Robert,  193. 


INDEX 


363 


Mount  Vernon,  14,  16,  29,  55,  62, 

63,  64. 
Muhlenberg,    John    Peter    Gabriel, 

223. 
Muse,  Adjutant,  17. 

North,  Frederick   (Lord),  128. 

Paine,  Thomas,  302. 
Parker,  Theodore,  302. 
Penn,  William,  102. 
Philipse,  Mary,  23. 
Phillips,     Wendell,     255-257,     267, 
268,  attacks  on  Lincoln,  329,  330. 
Pinckney,  Charles  Cotesworth,  229. 
Pope,  John,  272,  333. 
Priestley,  Joseph,  164-166. 
Putnam,  Israel,  41. 

Rahl,  Colonel,  42. 
Ralph,  James,  78. 
Randolph,   Edmund,   58,    122,   147, 

148,  212. 
Randolph,  William,  119. 
Rawle,  William,  252,  253. 
Rochambeau,  Count  de,  49,  50,  52, 

191. 
Rutledge,  Ann,  296,  297. 

Santa  Anna,  Antonio  L.  de,  245, 

Schuyler,  Philip,  44,  45,  188,  189, 
228    231 

Scott,'  Winfield,  244-246,  261,  262. 

Seabury,  Samuel,  183,  184. 

Seward,  William  Henry,  321,  322, 
part  in  Lincoln's  Inaugural 
Address,  323 ;  Thoughts  for  the 
President's  Consideration,  324- 
326;   327,  333,  334. 

Sherman,  William  T.,  346. 

Slavery,  view  of,  Jefferson's,  124, 
125,  135,  136,  139,  140;  Lee's, 
247,  259,  260;  Lincoln's,  307- 
321,  333-335;   Washington's,  29. 

Small,  William,  120,  121. 

Sparrow,  Henry,  289. 

Speed,   Joshua,   298,   299. 

Stamp  Act,  32,  85,  86,  105,  106, 
176. 

Stamp  Act  Congress,  32. 

Stephens,  Alexander  H.,  248. 

Steuben,  Baron  von,  46. 


Stevenson,  Mary,  86,  104. 
Stevenson,  Mrs.,  86,  103,  105. 
Stirling,  Lord,  46. 
Stuart,  James  E.  B.,  271,  275. 
Sullivan,  John,  41,  46. 

Tarleton,  Sir  Banastre,  138. 
Thomas,  George  Henry,  245. 
Trumbull,  Lyman,  328. 
Turner,  Nat,   243,  256. 

Van  Braam,  Jacob,  17. 
Venable,  Abraham,  223. 
Vergennes,  Count  de,  115. 
Vernon,  Admiral,  14. 
Voltaire,  111,  112,  141. 

Wade,  Benjamin  F.,  328,  342. 

Wallace,  Lew,  281. 

Washington,  Augustine,   11. 

Washington,  Augustine  (brother 
of  George) ,  12. 

Washington,  George,  characterized, 
6;  ancestry,  11,  12;  birth,  11, 
12;  mother,  12;  effect  of  father's 
early  death,  12;  schooling,  12, 
13;  life-education,  13;  reading, 
13;  sensitive  on  meager  school- 
ing, 13,  14;  to  Mount  Vernon, 
14;  friendship  with  Lord  Fair- 
fax, 14,  15;  physical  character- 
istics, 14,  15;  surveyor,  15;  trip 
to  West  Indies,  16;  inheritance 
of  Mount  Vernon,  16;  military 
training,  17;  first  expedition  to 
the  Ohio,  17,  18;  "Conotoearius", 
18;  Journal  of  the  expedition, 
18;  mental  characteristics,  18- 
20;  Diaries,  18-20;  humor,  19, 
20;  second  Ohio  expedition,  20, 
21 ;  view  of  war,  21 ;  modesty 
and  dignity,  21,  28;  experiences 
on  Braddock  expedition,  21,  22; 
in  command  of  Virginia  forces, 
23;  trip  to  Boston,  23;  temper, 
23;  third  journey  to  the  Ohio, 
23;  marriage,  23-25;  attitude 
toward  women,  23-25;  as  hus- 
band and  father,  25-27;  letter 
to  Washington  Custis,  26,  27; 
elected  burgess,  27,  28;  farmer 
and  business  man,  29,  30;  view 


364 


INDEX 


Washington,  George — Continued. 
of  slavery,  29;  wealth,  30;  at- 
titude toward  Britain,  33;  most 
eloquent  speech,  34;  delegate  to 
Continental  Congress,  34,  35; 
appointed  commander-in-chief, 
35;  effect  of  the  battle  of  Bunker 
Hill,  35;  taking  command,  35, 
36;  initial  problems,  36;  Dor- 
chester Heights,  36;  evacuation 
of  Boston,  36,  37 ;  view  of  the 
conflict,  37,  38;  battle  of  Long 
Island,  38,  39 ;  Haarlem  Heights 
and  White  Plains,  39 ;  retreat 
across  New  Jersey,  39,  40; 
letters  giving  view  of  the 
struggle,  40,  41 ;  crossing  the 
Delaware,  41 ;  battle  of  Trenton, 
41,  42;  character  as  military 
captain,  42,  43 ;  battle  of  Prince- 
ton, 43;  effect  of  the  New  York- 
New  Jersey  campaign,  43,  44 
plans  to  resist  Burgoyne,  44 
battle  of  Brandywine  Creek,  44 
battle  of  Germantown,  45;  the 
Conway  Cabal,  45;  winter  at 
Valley  Forge,  46;  the  French 
alliance,  47;  battle  of  Mon- 
mouth, 47,  48;  the  year  on  the 
Hudson,  48;  the  Arnold  treason, 
49-52;  the  Virginia  campaign, 
52;  Yorktown,  52;  the  desper- 
ate years  until  peace  was  pub- 
lished, 53-55;  farewell  to  the 
army,  54;  resigning  commis- 
sion, 55;  working  for  a  national 
government,  55-57 ;  the  "legacy" 
to  the  American  people,  55,  56; 
letter  to  Jay,  56,  57 ;  in  the  Con- 
stitutional Convention,  57;  first 


President,  57-61;  the  first  Cab- 
inet, 58;  address  to  Congress, 
58,  59 ;  foreign  policy,  59 ;  ac- 
ceptance of  second  term,  59 ;  at- 
tacks upon,  60;  view  of  party 
spirit,  60,  61;  of  the  Union,  61, 
62;  Farewell  Address,  60-62; 
late  life  at  Mount  Vernon,  62- 
64;  circumstances  of  death,  64; 
summary  of,  64,  65;  66,  67; 
letter  of  Franklin  to,  113,  114; 
116,  118;  contrast  with  Jeffer- 
son, 127;  133,  143,  147,  148,  151, 
152,  159,  161,  166,  169,  172,  174, 
175,  186,  187;  contrast  with 
Hamilton,  187,  188;  break  with 
Hamilton,  189-191;  205,  212, 
217,  220;  Hamilton  drafting  the 
Farewell  Address,  222,  223; 
229,  230,  232,  236,  238,  relations 
of  family  to  Lee,  239-242;  Lee's 
example,  242;  259,  267,  286. 

Washington,  John,  11,  18. 

Washington,    John   Augustine,   40. 

Washington,  Lawrence,  12,  15-17. 

Washington,  Martha,  23,  25. 

Washington,  Mary  Ball,  12,  62,  63. 

Wayles,  John,  123,  125,  126,  127. 

Wayne,  Anthony,  48,  48. 

Webster,  Daniel,  251,  252. 

Wedderburn,  Alexander,  108,  109, 
112. 

Welles,  Gideon,  326. 

Wellington,  Duke  of,  286. 

Wilson,  Woodrow,  58,  59,  130,  331. 

Wren,  Sir  Christopher,  120. 

Wythe,  George,  120,  121. 

Yates,  Robert,  200. 


